JP2007111717A - Apparatus for laser beam machining of thin film coated substrate - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a compact apparatus and a method for laser beam machining, by which apparatus and method, a substrate and a film can be processed by high-quality laser beam machining, and the installation floor space can be reduced to a minimum level. <P>SOLUTION: The apparatus for laser beam machining comprises a substrate lifting plate 37 having a first lifting shaft 50A, which is mounted on an X plate 36 and is arranged on one side of a pair of end sides in parallel to the X direction, and a second lifting shaft 50B arranged on the other end side. The substrate lifting plate 37 has a fixing portion 28 for mounting and fixing the substrate 100, and a Y plate 31 movable in the Y direction with respect to the substrate lifting plate 37 thereon. The substrate lifting plate 37 can turn about the first lifting shaft 50A and the second lifting shaft 50B within the tilting angle range from the horizontal direction to the vertical direction with respect to the horizontal surface of the X plate 31, and can be fixed to any position with respect to the X plate 31. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a laser processing apparatus for a substrate on which a thin film is formed, and a laser processing method for a substrate on which a thin film is formed in a laser processing apparatus for a substrate on which a thin film is formed. Laser processing apparatus and laser engraving apparatus for a substrate on which a thin film having an XY stage capable of processing the front and back surfaces of the substrate is formed for injecting laser light from the surface and the substrate surface and etching the thin film, The present invention relates to a laser processing method and a laser marking method for a substrate on which a thin film is formed in a laser processing apparatus for the substrate on which a thin film is formed.

  Here, the substrate on which a thin film is formed is a substrate on which a single layer film and a laminated film such as a surface electrode film, a power generation film by a semiconductor stack, a back electrode film, and the like are formed on a substrate, as exemplified by a thin film solar cell. Hereinafter, for convenience, it is referred to as a semiconductor substrate. Therefore, the semiconductor substrate here does not specify a silicon wafer substrate generally used as a semiconductor manufacturing substrate.

  The manufacturing process of the thin film solar cell module shown in FIG. 1 is shown in FIG. In manufacturing the thin film solar cell module 1, the following steps are sequentially performed. (A) The laminated surface of the power generation cells 11 on the translucent substrate 2 is set. (B) Then, the surface electrode layer 3 is laminated on the lamination surface of the substrate 2 by vapor deposition. (C) Next, the first groove 4 is provided at the first position of the surface electrode layer 3 by the laser beam incident from the laminated surface side. (D) Next, the power generation layer 5 is laminated on the surface electrode layer 3. (E) Next, the second groove 6 is provided at a second position different from the first position of the power generation layer 5 by a laser beam incident from the laminated surface side. (F) Next, the back electrode layer 9 including the first back electrode layer 7 and the second back electrode layer 8 is laminated on the power generation layer 5. Then, the third groove 10 is provided at a third position different from the first position and the second position of the back electrode layer by a laser beam incident from the substrate surface side opposite to the laminated surface.

  In the manufacturing process of the conventional thin film solar cell module 1, as shown in FIG. 3, etching for forming a groove with the laser beam 83 in the form of being horizontally placed with the film surface formed on the substrate facing down. Processing was carried out. That is, the substrate 85 is placed on a conventional semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus having an XY stage 86, and an upper portion of the substrate 85 is formed so as to form a laser beam pattern 87 on a desired laser processing portion of the substrate 85. A laser beam was incident from a laser oscillator 81 disposed on the laser beam through a laser optical system (mirror 82 and lens 84). However, in the laser etching process, it is necessary to etch and remove a portion of a desired layer by entering a laser beam from the substrate surface as in the step (g) of FIG. 2, and this causes the following problems.

  In order to suppress damage to the formed film, the substrate transport in the normal production process can be transported to each processing device with the film surface of the substrate facing up and the lower substrate surface supported by a transport roller or the like. Done. In the production process of the thin film solar cell, in order to make the laser beam incident from the substrate surface as in the step (g) of FIG. 2, the front and back of the thin film solar cell module are reversed and placed on the XY table. This necessitates a new substrate reversing device, which increases costs and increases the device installation area. Next, when the laser beam is incident from the substrate surface side and the film surface is laser-processed, the laser beam is formed so that it is easy to remove the etching waste of the film and form a good processing groove without damaging the XY table with the laser beam. A plurality of substrate support pins (not shown) are installed on an XY table provided in the processing apparatus to support the substrate. For this reason, it is necessary to shift the substrate support pin position from the processing position where the laser is incident. Further, when the substrate is supported by the plurality of substrate support pins, the substrate is bent or warped by its own weight, and the energy density of the laser beam at the laser processing position varies. For this reason, as the area of the substrate increases, variation distribution such as the width and depth of etching on the film surface of the substrate may occur, which may affect the battery performance. Further, at the time of laser beam incident processing from the substrate surface side, since the film surface is supported by the substrate support pins, the battery film may be damaged, and the battery performance may be affected.

  In relation to the above technology, the following reports have been made.

  In the “liquid crystal substrate automatic transfer device” disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-114790, a cassette stocker unit, a substrate pickup mechanism for taking out a liquid crystal substrate from a cassette installed in the cassette stocker unit, and the substrate pickup mechanism A substrate transport unit that transports the liquid crystal substrate taken out from the cassette to a predetermined position. The substrate transport unit is mounted on the transport table body, a lifting table installed on the top surface of the transport unit body, and the lifting table. A substrate transport mechanism for gripping and transporting the liquid crystal substrate to a predetermined position, and a substrate reversing transport mechanism for reversing the liquid crystal substrate taken out from the cassette by the substrate pickup mechanism and transporting the liquid crystal substrate to a position above the lifting table. A liquid crystal substrate automatic transfer apparatus has been proposed.

  In addition, the “resist coating apparatus” disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-62010 has at least a nip roller, a rod bar, and a resist tray, and a glass substrate that passes through a facing portion of the nip roller and the rod bar is provided on the glass tray. A coating device that coats the resist solution by rotating the rod bar, a pre-coating substrate transport unit that carries the glass substrate to the opposite portion of the nip roller and the rod bar, and a glass substrate coated with the resist solution in a coating posture. A resist coating unit composed of a post-coating conveyance device that is carried out to the reversing unit, a stopper that is installed at the tip of the post-coating conveyance device and temporarily stops the glass substrate that has been conveyed from the resist coating unit, and glass that has passed through the stopper A substrate chuck that engages and holds both ends parallel to the substrate transport direction is mounted and transported. Reversing unit comprising a pre-reversing conveyance unit comprising a reversing arm that rotates in the direction and conveys the glass substrate, and a post-reversing conveyance unit that receives the glass substrate conveyed from the pre-reversing conveyance unit and conveys the glass substrate to a subsequent leveling device. And a resist coating apparatus in which at least a member that is disposed near or in contact with the glass substrate that constitutes the reversing unit is made of a conductive material. .

  In addition, in the “large substrate transfer apparatus and transfer method” disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-167036, a transfer carriage for transferring a large substrate to a substrate transfer stage outside the vacuum processing chamber, and a substrate on the transfer carriage In a large substrate transfer device having a substrate holding mechanism for holding the substrate, the roller frame at the substrate transfer stage position of the substrate transfer roller is separated from the other substrate transfer roller unit and stands up to a stable tilt angle, and the substrate of the transfer carriage There has been proposed a large-sized substrate transfer apparatus in which a retractable substrate transfer mechanism for transferring a substrate to a holding mechanism is incorporated in a transfer roller.

JP-A-8-114790 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-62010 JP 2002-167036 A

  The purpose of the present invention is to make laser light incident from the film surface of the semiconductor substrate and from the substrate surface using laser light, to perform high-quality laser processing of the thin film formed on the substrate, and to install in a compact and minimum necessary amount An object of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus and laser marking apparatus that realize an area, a semiconductor substrate laser processing method in the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus, and a laser marking method.

  In the following, means for solving the problem will be described using reference numerals with parentheses used in [Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention]. These symbols are added in order to clarify the correspondence between the description of [Claims] and the description of the best mode for carrying out the invention. ] Should not be used for interpretation of the technical scope of the invention described in the above.

  The semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus (300) of the present invention includes a base plate (43) and an X plate (36) mounted on the base plate and movable in the first horizontal direction relative to the base plate. ) And a first rising axis (set on a first end that is one of the opposing ends and a pair of opposing ends parallel to the X direction) 50A) and a substrate rising plate (37) having a second rising axis (50B) installed on the second edge which is the other edge of the opposite edge, and placed on the substrate rising plate A fixing portion (28) for loading and fixing the substrate (100), and a first hollow portion in a region covered with the substrate, and a first horizontal direction with respect to the substrate start-up plate; Y plate that can move in the orthogonal Y direction (3 The substrate start-up plate is provided with a second hollow portion in a region that is covered by the substrate and within the drive range of the Y plate (31), and is centered around the first rising axis and the second rising axis. It can be rotated in a direction perpendicular to the horizontal plane.

  The semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus (300) according to the present invention includes a base plate (43) and a first plate (35) mounted on the base plate and movable in a first horizontal direction with respect to the base plate. A second plate (36) mounted on the first plate and movable in a second horizontal direction perpendicular to the first horizontal direction with respect to the first plate; and on the second plate A pair of opposed end sides that are placed and orthogonal to the first horizontal direction, and a first rising axis (50A) installed on a first end side that is one side of the opposed end sides; A third plate (37) having a second rising axis (50B) installed on the second end which is the other end of the opposite ends, and a substrate placed on the third plate, A fixing part (28) for loading and fixing (100); And a fourth plate (31) movable in a direction perpendicular to the second horizontal direction with respect to the third plate, the third plate further comprising a substrate. Is provided with a second hollow portion in a region within the driving range of the fourth plate (31), and rotates in a direction perpendicular to the horizontal plane of the second plate around the first rising axis and the second rising axis. It is free.

  The second plate (36) in the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus (300) of the present invention is configured so that the third plate (37) moves from the horizontal direction to the vertical direction with respect to the horizontal plane of the second plate around the first rising axis. The first rising fixing part (24) for fixing at an arbitrary angle between is provided.

  In the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus (300) of the present invention, the second plate (36) moves the third plate (37) from the horizontal direction to the vertical direction with respect to the horizontal plane of the second plate around the second rising axis. The second rising fixing part (24) for fixing at an arbitrary angle between is provided.

  Further, in the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus (300) of the present invention, the fixing portion (28) for loading and fixing the substrate (100) included in the fourth plate (31) includes the substrate of the fourth plate. A chuck portion (28) b for centering at a predetermined position and a claw portion (28a) for holding the substrate at a predetermined position on the fourth plate are provided.

  In the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus (300A) of the present invention, the second plate (36) has the third plate (37) rotating around the first rising axis (50A) or the second rising axis (50B). To move and fix one of the opposing edges of the third plate that are not connected to the second plate when fixed at any angle between the horizontal and vertical directions relative to the horizontal plane of the second plate The end surface fixing part (44).

  A semiconductor substrate laser processing system (400) according to the present invention includes a semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus (300, 300A) according to any one of claims 1 to 6, and a semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus. A substrate transfer device (38) for transferring the substrate and a laser irradiation device (200) for irradiating the substrate mounted on the semiconductor substrate laser processing device with a laser beam.

  Further, the semiconductor substrate laser processing method in the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus (300, 300A) of the present invention includes a base plate (43) and an X plate (movable in the X direction which is the first horizontal direction with respect to the base plate). 36) and a first rising axis (1) which is placed on the X plate and installed on a pair of opposite end sides parallel to the X direction and a first end side which is one of the opposite end sides. 50A) and a substrate rising plate (37) having a second rising axis (50B) installed on the second edge which is the other edge of the opposite edge, and placed on the substrate rising plate A fixing portion (28) for loading and fixing the substrate (100), and a first hollow portion in a region covered with the substrate, and a first horizontal direction with respect to the substrate start-up plate; Moveable in the orthogonal Y direction The substrate rising plate includes a second hollow portion in a region that is covered by the substrate and within the driving range of the Y plate (31), and is centered on the first rising axis and the second rising axis. And a semiconductor substrate laser processing method in a semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus that is rotatable in a vertical direction with respect to a horizontal plane of an X plate, wherein the substrate is carried into the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus (300, 300A). A loading step, a substrate centering step for centering the substrate at a predetermined position on the Y plate, a substrate fixing step for fixing the substrate to a predetermined position on the Y plate, and processing any one of the film surface and the substrate surface of the substrate Depending on whether the substrate rising plate is horizontal with respect to the X plate, the first rising axis or the second rising axis is the center. Depending on the substrate placement step of rotating the substrate startup plate around the selected axis and fixing it at an arbitrary angle, and a predetermined processing area of the substrate, A substrate processing step of controlling the amount of movement of the X plate in the X direction with respect to the base plate and the amount of movement of the Y plate in the Y direction with respect to the substrate start-up plate, and injecting a laser beam into the processing region of the substrate.

  According to the present invention, a semiconductor that realizes a compact and minimum installation area by performing laser processing on a film surface of a semiconductor substrate such as a thin-film solar cell and a substrate surface by using the laser light and performing high-quality laser processing. A substrate laser processing apparatus and laser marking apparatus, and a semiconductor substrate laser processing method and laser marking method in a semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus can be provided.

  With reference to the accompanying drawings, a semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus and laser marking apparatus according to the present invention, and a semiconductor substrate laser processing method and a laser marking method in the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus will be described below. .

  A semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention uses a laser beam to make a laser beam incident on the surface of a semiconductor substrate such as a solar cell, and etch a thin film or perform laser marking. The high-quality laser processing is performed, and the apparatus configuration is compact so that the apparatus can be installed with a minimum installation area. A semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a base plate, an X plate that is placed on the base plate and is movable in an X direction that is a first horizontal direction with respect to the base plate, A pair of opposing edges that are placed on the X plate and parallel to the X direction, and a first rising axis that is placed on a first edge that is one of the opposing edges; And a substrate rising plate having a second rising axis installed at the second end which is the other end. Further, the substrate startup plate includes a fixing portion for loading and fixing the substrate, and a hollow portion in a region covered with the substrate, and a first horizontal direction with respect to the substrate startup plate, A Y plate movable in the orthogonal Y direction is placed. The substrate rising plate includes a hollow portion in a region covered with the substrate, and an inclination angle range from a horizontal direction to a vertical direction with respect to a horizontal plane of the X plate around the first rising axis and the second rising axis. It can be freely rotated within and is fixed to the X plate at an arbitrary position within the tilt angle range.

  In the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention, a laser beam incident from a second horizontal direction orthogonal to the first horizontal direction is loaded on the apparatus and is subjected to film formation. Depending on which of the substrate surface and the substrate surface to be processed, the substrate rising plate with respect to the horizontal surface of the X plate is centered on which of the first rising axis and the second rising axis. Then, it is selected whether to rotate at an arbitrary angle, and the substrate rising plate is rotated around the selected axis and fixed at an arbitrary angle. Thus, conventionally, a dedicated substrate reversing device for reversing the substrate is required depending on whether the laser beam is incident from the surface of the substrate to be formed or the surface of the substrate. Therefore, the installation area of the apparatus, which required an installation area much larger than twice that of the substrate, can be reduced to about the area of the range in which the substrate is moved in order to laser process the substrate according to the present invention.

  In a conventional semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus, a substrate is supported in a horizontal direction using a substrate support pin, and laser processing is performed on a desired position of the substrate by entering laser light from the vertical direction. In particular, when performing laser processing such as etching or laser engraving from the substrate surface of the substrate, the film surface may be damaged because the film surface of the substrate is supported by the substrate support pins. In particular, when laser processing is performed on a large substrate, the support by the support pins causes bending or warping of the substrate during laser processing, and it is difficult to perform uniform laser processing over the region to be processed of the substrate. On the other hand, by using the laser processing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention, the substrate is installed in a substantially vertical direction, so that the substrate is subjected to laser processing that suppresses the occurrence of bending and warping due to the gravity of the substrate. The support does not damage the membrane surface. Further, the substrate undergoing laser processing hardly undergoes bending or warping, and uniform laser processing is possible over the entire desired processing region. Thus, a high quality substrate such as a thin film solar cell module can be manufactured by the semiconductor substrate laser processing method in the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus of the present invention.

(Embodiment 1) Semiconductor substrate laser processing (etching and laser engraving) apparatus FIG. 4A shows a schematic configuration of a semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus 300 according to the present embodiment is placed on the base plate 43 and the base plate 43 in the third horizontal direction with respect to the base plate 43 via the δ-direction linear motion guide 42. A plate A35 movable in a certain δ direction, and a first horizontal mounted on the plate A35 and perpendicular to the δ direction with respect to the plate A35 by the X direction linear motion guide 41 and the plate BX direction drive system 26. Plate B36 which can move in the X direction which is the direction. The side surface of the plate A is provided with a fitting groove. The plate A is installed on the base plate and is fitted with the fitting groove to adjust the position of the plate A in the δ direction with respect to the base plate. The position is adjusted by the directional position adjustment system 27.

  In addition, on the plate B36, a pair of opposite end sides orthogonal to the third horizontal direction and a first rising edge that is installed on a first end side that is one of the opposite end sides. A plate C37 having a shaft 50A and a second rising shaft 50B installed on the second end which is the other end is provided. Furthermore, a plate D31 having a substrate centering and substrate holding chuck claw 28 for loading and fixing the substrate 100 via the Y-direction linear motion guide 29 is provided on the plate C37. An area covered with the loading substrate in the plate D31 constitutes a hollow portion. The plate D31 is movable by the plate DY direction drive system 22 in the Y direction that is the same as the first horizontal direction when the plate C37 is placed horizontally with respect to the plate C37.

  The plate C37 is further covered with the substrate loaded on the plate D31, and the plate C37 has a hollow portion in the entire region in the driving range of the plate D31. Then, the first rising shaft 50A and the second rising shaft 50B can be rotated in the direction perpendicular to the horizontal plane of the plate B36. When rotating the plate C37 in the vertical direction from the horizontal plane of the plate B36, for example, the plate C rising drive gear 24 is fitted to the surface incident rotating gear attached to the first rising shaft 50A shown in FIG. 4A, The plate C37 may be raised using the rotational power of the plate C rise drive system 25 that is linked to the plate C rise drive gear 24. When the inclination angle of the plate C37 reaches a desired angle from the horizontal surface of the plate B36, the position of the plate C37 is fixed by stopping the plate C rising drive system. However, when the plate C36 is linearly moved in the X direction, if the rigidity of the plate C37 is insufficient, the plate C37 is shaken, and the relative distance between the laser focus and the substrate 100 loaded on the apparatus varies. However, when the substrate has a large area, there may be a problem in the uniformity of the laser etching process. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 4B, the upper part for the plate C for fixing one of the opposing edges not connected to the plate B36 of the plate C37 on the plate B36 of the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus 300A. An anti-sway guide 44 is provided. When the plate C37 rises, the shaking prevention guide 44 can clamp and fix the upper part of the plate C37 using an electromagnetic chuck or the like. As a result, the plate C37 rotates around the first rising axis 50A or the second rising axis 50B, and is fixed at a predetermined angle between the horizontal direction and the vertical direction with respect to the horizontal plane of the plate B36, and at this position. Stable substrate driving during laser processing can be achieved. The plate top anti-sway guide 44 shown in FIG. 4B is when the plate C37 rotates around the first rising shaft 50A. Although not shown in the drawing about the second rising axis 50B, it is possible to provide and fix the plate C upper anti-sway guide 44 in the same manner.

  When the laser oscillator that oscillates the laser beam is on the first rising axis 50A side in the δ direction shown in FIG. 4A, the plate C37 is rotated around the first rising axis 50A in the vertical direction from the horizontal plane of the plate B36. This allows laser processing to be performed on the film surface of the loaded substrate (usually, the substrate is transported with the conveyor 38 facing the film surface upward and loaded on the apparatus with the film surface facing up). (FIG. 5). Similarly, by rotating the plate C37 about the second rising axis 50B in the vertical direction from the horizontal surface of the plate B36, the loaded substrate is in a state in which laser processing can be performed by injecting laser light from the substrate surface side. (FIG. 6). At this time, the plate C rising drive gear 24 moves to the position of the second rising shaft 50B via the linear guide 32, and is fitted to the second rising shaft 50B, so that the plate C rising drive system 25 is Rotate in the opposite direction. In FIG. 4A, the plate C rising drive gear 24 movable via the linear guide 32 is used to raise the plate C37, but the plate C rising drive gear 24 is preliminarily set to 1 on each rising axis. It may be arranged one by one. The plate C37 may be raised by connecting a drive system such as an electric motor to the plate C rise drive system 24, and may be directly driven electrically without using the plate C rise drive system 25, or A drive device having an equivalent function such as adding a plate C rising drive system using an air cylinder to the plate B36 can be replaced.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the plate B36 can move in the X direction with respect to the plate A35, and the plate D31 can move in the Y direction with respect to the plate C. In addition, since the plate C37 has a rotation axis at each of a pair of opposing edges orthogonal to the δ direction, the plate C37 is rotated around each rotation axis, and the main plate is rotated from the δ direction. A laser beam irradiated toward the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus according to the embodiment is irradiated from the film surface side or the substrate surface side of the laser processing target substrate placed on the plate C37 via the plate D31. Is focused on the processed film. Then, based on the desired laser light incident side surface of the substrate and the desired laser processing region, the substrate is laser processed by selecting the rotation axis to be rotated and determining the amount of movement control in the X and Y directions. I can do it. The movement of the plate A35 in the δ direction is for adjusting the relative distance between the focal position of the laser beam and the position of the substrate in order to optimize the focal length of the laser beam with respect to the substrate. In the plate C37, the plate C37 and the laser beam are used when the first rising shaft 50A is turned up around the rotation axis and when the second rising shaft 50B is turned up around the rotation axis. Since the distances of the focal positions are greatly different, it is necessary to move the plate A35 in the δ direction. However, the incident optical system that makes the laser beam incident on the present embodiment adjusts the relative distance between the focal position of the laser beam and the position of the substrate in order to optimize the focal length of the laser beam with respect to the substrate. In the case where the laser beam focus adjusting mechanism in the δ direction is provided, the present embodiment does not need to include the plate A35.

  Further, in the description of the present embodiment, it has been shown that a desired laser processing can be performed on a substrate by a semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus having a combination of components having the functions as described above. In the invention, not only the combination of the constituent elements having the functions as described above, but also other constituent elements having the equivalent function (around the first axis and the second axis perpendicular to the irradiation direction of the laser beam irradiated horizontally) A structure having a function of irradiating the laser beam substantially perpendicularly to the incidence of the laser beam from the film surface side or the substrate surface side of the substrate by raising the substrate to be laser processed in the vertical direction , And a position control mechanism having a function of controlling the movement of the substrate in the direction of each of the first axis and the second axis and the direction perpendicular thereto, and a desired laser with respect to the substrate Engineering may be realized a semiconductor substrate laser processing device capable.

  The present embodiment eliminates the need for a substrate reversing device, reduces the device cost, and reduces the installation area of the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus to approximately the area of the substrate and the range in which the substrate is moved for laser processing. can do.

(Operation principle of Embodiment 1)
Next, the operation principle of the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus 300, 300A according to the present embodiment will be described.

  Prior to laser processing of a semiconductor substrate using the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatuses 300 and 300A according to the present embodiment, the substrate 100 to be laser processed is transferred to the apparatus by a roller conveyor. In the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatuses 300 and 300A, when the substrate 100 is transported to the top of the plate D31 in a state where the plate C37 is horizontal, the substrate centering combined with the plate D is also used as shown in FIG. The claw portion 28 a of the substrate holding electromagnetic chuck claw 28 centers the substrate at a predetermined position on the plate D. When the plate C rises slightly and the height of the substrate transport roller 39 installed on the plate B36 is lowered with respect to the plate D, the substrate centered at a predetermined position on the plate D comes into close contact with the plate D, and also serves as substrate centering. The chuck portion 28b of the substrate holding chuck claw 28 holds the substrate through the concave portion of the claw portion 28a and fixes it to the plate D. A plurality of substrate centering and holding chuck claws 28 are provided at positions surrounding the substrate on the plate D, and hold the two opposing ends of the substrate so as not to shake. As the substrate centering and holding chuck claw 28, a chuck using electromagnetic force or a chuck using air pressure can be used. In addition, when the thin-film solar cell is used outdoors, it is desirable not to perform laser processing up to the substrate end portion so that outside moisture does not enter the thin-film solar cell through the laser etching groove around the substrate. In this case, a masking plate for laser light can be connected to the substrate centering / holding chuck claw 28.

  When laser processing of the substrate is started, the following steps are performed.

(1) The plate is centered on which of the first rising axis 50A and the second rising axis 50B depending on which of laser beam incidence from the film surface side and substrate surface side of the substrate 100 is processed. It is selected whether C37 is rotated at an arbitrary angle with respect to the horizontal plane of the plate B36, and the plate C37 is rotated around the selected axis. The plate C rising gear 24 is moved by rotating the worm shaft of the plate C rising drive system 25, and is rotated in close contact with the surface incident rotating gear 23 of the plate C37, for example. By rotating the surface incident rotary gear 23 of the plate C37, the plate C37 gradually rises from the horizontal position to the vertical position. Then, when the plate C37 is at a desired arbitrary angle with respect to the plate B, the plate C rising drive system 25 is stopped to fix the position of the plate C37. At the time of fixing, based on the size of the substrate and the vibration environment at the time of laser processing, the upper shaking stopper for the plate C for fixing the end of the plate C37 that is not connected to the plate B36 is fixed. A guide 44 is used. Further, when the position of the plate C37 is fixed, the inclination angle θ may be provided from the vertical direction without being limited to the vertical position from the horizontal position. When the inclination angle θ is fixed by, for example, tilting about θ = 10 ° from the vertical direction, the substrate 100 is pressed against the plate D and the plate D is pressed against the plate C with a force corresponding to about 17% of its own weight. As a result, floating components such as a minute clearance of the Y-direction linear motion guide 29 when the plate D moves in the Y-direction can be eliminated, and high-precision laser processing is possible. As the tilt angle θ increases, the stability of the substrate increases. However, the laser beam is incident obliquely. Accordingly, when performing laser processing such as etching, the etching width by the laser beam increases and both sides of the etching groove are formed. In consideration of the fact that the energy density of the laser beam on the processing side surface of the substrate becomes different and that good etching cannot be performed, an inclination angle is selected in the range of θ = 5 to 15 °, and the substrate processing surface is roughly set. It should be within the vertical range.

  Here, the laser beam substrate surface (film surface) incident processing state when the substrate is vertically installed is shown in FIG. 7, and the laser beam substrate surface (film surface) incident processing state when the substrate is obliquely installed is shown in FIG. FIG. 9 shows the laser beam back side (substrate surface) incident processing state when the substrate is vertically installed, FIG. 10 shows the laser beam back side (substrate surface) incident processing state when the substrate is obliquely installed, and FIG. FIG. 11 shows the state of laser beam incident on the substrate surface (film surface) when the substrate is vertically installed using the plate C upper anti-sway guide 44.

(2) Next, the position adjustment system 27 in the plate Aδ direction with respect to the plate A35 is adjusted so that the relative distance between the focal point of the laser beam and the film processing position of the substrate becomes appropriate.

(3) Next, the substrate film is etched by the linear motion system of the plate B in the X direction and the linear motion system of the plate D in the Y direction. Judging from the movable speed of the plate D of the linear motion system in the Y direction of the plate D in the rigidity and load of the apparatus configuration, the Y direction is the laser etching groove processing direction, and the X direction of the plate B is the feeding position of the etching position. And Further, the X and Y etching directions and the feeding directions can be freely selected according to the processing conditions regardless of the above. Then, the amount of movement of the plate B36 relative to the plate A35 in the X direction and the amount of movement of the plate D31 relative to the plate C37 in the Y direction are controlled according to a predetermined substrate processing region, and laser light is applied to the substrate processing region. Irradiate.

  When the laser processing is completed, the processed substrate is carried out of the apparatus in the reverse procedure as described in (1) above. In the case of laser processing, it is desirable to perform etching processing in a reciprocating process in the X (or Y) direction in order to shorten the processing time.

  By performing laser processing using the laser processing apparatus according to the present embodiment, a substrate inversion device that inverts the substrate for laser incidence from the substrate surface becomes unnecessary. Further, it is possible to prevent the film surface from being damaged as compared with the method of pin-supporting the substrate with the film surface of the inverted substrate. Further, the substrate undergoing laser processing does not bend or warp due to its own weight, and uniform laser processing can be performed over the entire desired processing region. As described above, the semiconductor substrate laser processing method in the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus of the present invention can manufacture a high-quality semiconductor substrate in integrated processing of thin film solar cell modules.

(Embodiment 2) Semiconductor substrate laser processing system A schematic configuration of a semiconductor substrate laser processing system according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention is shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B. The semiconductor substrate laser processing system 400, 400A according to the present embodiment includes the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus 300, 300A according to the first embodiment, and the substrate transfer transfer for transferring the substrate to the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus. The roller conveyor 38 and the laser oscillator 200 that irradiates the laser beam 210 from the δ direction to the substrate 100 placed on the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatuses 300 and 300A are provided. In the present embodiment shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, only one laser oscillator 200 is provided, but there may be a plurality of laser oscillators 200 for improving the speed of laser processing. desirable. Moreover, the laser processing speed is similarly improved by dividing the laser beam 210 irradiating the substrate into a plurality of laser beams having the same energy density using a half mirror or the like while keeping the single laser transmitter 200. I can do it.

  Since the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus 300, 300A provided in the present embodiment and the operating principle of laser processing of the semiconductor substrate according to the present embodiment have been described in the first embodiment, description thereof is omitted here.

  According to the present embodiment, as in the first embodiment, the substrate inversion device is not necessary, and the cost can be reduced. In addition, the installation area of the semiconductor substrate laser processing system can be reduced to approximately the area of the substrate and the range in which the substrate is moved for processing. Further, by performing laser processing on the semiconductor substrate by the laser processing system according to the present embodiment, it is possible to prevent the film surface from being damaged by the substrate support pins during substrate support during laser processing. Further, the substrate undergoing laser processing does not bend or warp, and uniform laser processing is possible over the entire desired processing region. And high quality semiconductor substrates, such as a thin film solar cell module, can be manufactured.

It is a figure which shows the cross-section of a thin film solar cell module. It is a figure which shows the manufacturing process of a thin film solar cell module. It is the figure which showed the model of the laser processing in the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus provided with the conventional XY stage. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus concerning Embodiment 1, and the semiconductor substrate laser processing system concerning Embodiment 2. FIG. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the semiconductor substrate laser processing apparatus concerning Embodiment 1, and the semiconductor substrate laser processing system concerning Embodiment 2. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a set state at the time of laser beam substrate surface (film surface) incidence processing in Embodiment 1. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a set state at the time of laser beam substrate back surface (substrate surface) incident processing in Embodiment 1. FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a laser beam incident state on the substrate surface (film surface) when the substrate is vertically installed in the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a laser beam incident surface (film surface) incident processing state when the substrate is obliquely installed in the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a laser beam substrate back surface (substrate surface) incident processing state when the substrate is vertically installed in the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a processing state of laser beam incident on the back surface of the substrate (substrate surface) when the substrate is obliquely installed in the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a laser beam substrate surface (film surface) incident processing state when the substrate is vertically installed using the plate C upper anti-sway guide in the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an electromagnetic chuck claw for holding a substrate centering and holding substrate provided in the first embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Solar cell 2 ... Board | substrate 3 ... Surface electrode layer 4 ... 1st groove | channel 5 ... Electric power generation layer 6 ... 2nd groove | channel 7 ... 1st back surface electrode layer 8 ... 2nd back surface electrode layer 9 ... Back surface electrode layer 10 ... 3rd groove | channel DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Power generation cell 22 ... Plate DY direction drive system 23 ... Surface incident rotation gear 24 ... Plate C Rise drive gear 25 ... Plate C Rise drive system 26 ... Plate B X direction drive system 27 ... Plate A δ direction position adjustment system 28 ... Chuck claw 28a for holding the substrate centering and holding substrate ... Claw 28b ... Chuck 29 ... Y-direction linear motion guide 31 ... Plate D
32 ... Linear guide 35 ... Plate A
36 ... Plate B
37 ... Plate C
38 ... Substrate conveying roller conveyor 39 ... Substrate conveying roller 40 ... Substrate surface incident rotation gear 41 ... X direction linear motion guide 42 ... δ direction linear motion guide 43 ... Base plate 44 ... Upper anti-swaying guide 50A for plate C ... First rising Axis 50B ... second rising axis 81, 200 ... laser oscillator 82 ... mirror 83, 210 ... laser beam 84 ... lens 85 ... substrate 86 ... XY stage 87 ... laser beam pattern 100 ... solar cell substrate 300, 300A ... semiconductor substrate Laser processing apparatus 400, 400A ... Semiconductor substrate laser processing system

Claims (8)

A base plate;
An X plate placed on the base plate and movable in an X direction, which is a first horizontal direction with respect to the base plate;
A pair of opposing edges placed on the X plate and parallel to the X direction, and a first rising axis installed on a first edge that is one of the opposing edges; A substrate rising plate having a second rising axis installed on a second edge which is the other edge of the opposite edges;
A fixing portion mounted on the substrate start-up plate for loading and fixing the substrate; and a first hollow portion in a region covered with the substrate; A Y plate movable in the Y direction perpendicular to the first horizontal direction,
The substrate rising plate includes a second hollow portion in a region covered with the substrate, and rotates in a direction perpendicular to the horizontal plane of the X plate around the first rising axis and the second rising axis. An apparatus for laser processing of a substrate on which a movable thin film is formed. A base plate;
A first plate mounted on the base plate and movable in a first horizontal direction with respect to the base plate;
A second plate placed on the first plate and movable in a second horizontal direction perpendicular to the first horizontal direction with respect to the first plate;
Placed on the second plate and installed on a pair of opposing end sides orthogonal to the first horizontal direction and a first end side which is one of the opposing end sides. A third plate having a first rising axis and a second rising axis installed on a second end that is the other end of the opposing ends;
A fixing portion mounted on the third plate for loading and fixing the substrate; and a first hollow portion in a region covered with the substrate; A fourth plate movable in a direction perpendicular to the two horizontal directions,
The third plate further includes a second hollow portion in a region covered with the substrate, and is oriented perpendicularly to a horizontal plane of the second plate around the first rising axis and the second rising axis. An apparatus for laser processing of a substrate on which a rotatable thin film is formed. In the apparatus for laser processing of the board | substrate which formed the thin film of Claim 2,
The second plate includes a first rising fixing portion for fixing the third plate at an arbitrary angle between a horizontal direction and a vertical direction with respect to a horizontal plane of the second plate around the first rising axis. An apparatus for laser processing of a substrate on which a thin film is provided. In the apparatus for laser processing of the board | substrate which formed the thin film of Claim 2 or 3,
The second plate includes a second rising fixing portion for fixing the third plate at an arbitrary angle between a horizontal direction and a vertical direction with respect to a horizontal plane of the second plate around the second rising axis. An apparatus for laser processing of a substrate on which a thin film is provided. In the apparatus for laser processing of the board | substrate in which the thin film as described in at least one of Claim 2 to 4 was formed,
The fixing part for loading and fixing the substrate provided in the fourth plate includes a chuck part for centering the substrate at a predetermined position of the fourth plate, and the substrate on the fourth plate. An apparatus for laser processing of a substrate on which a thin film having a claw portion for holding at the predetermined position is formed.   6. The apparatus for laser processing a substrate on which a thin film according to claim 2 is formed, wherein the second plate is arranged such that the third plate is around the first rising axis or the second rising axis. When the rotating plate is fixed at an arbitrary angle between the horizontal direction and the vertical direction with respect to the horizontal plane of the second plate, the opposite end of the third plate that is not connected to the second plate The apparatus for laser processing of the board | substrate which formed the thin film provided with the end surface fixing | fixed part for fixing one side. An apparatus for laser processing of a substrate on which the thin film according to any one of claims 1 to 6 is formed;
A substrate transfer device for transferring the substrate to a laser processing device for the substrate on which the thin film is formed;
A laser processing system for a substrate on which a thin film is formed, comprising: a laser irradiation device for irradiating the substrate with a laser beam placed on a laser processing apparatus for the substrate on which the thin film is formed. A base plate, an X plate movable in the X direction, which is a first horizontal direction with respect to the base plate, and a pair of opposing edges placed on the X plate and parallel to the X direction; A first rising axis installed on a first end side that is one side of the opposing end sides, and a second rising axis installed on a second end side that is the other end side of the opposing end sides; A substrate start-up plate having a substrate, a fixing portion mounted on the substrate start-up plate for loading and fixing the substrate, and a first hollow portion in a region covered with the substrate, A Y plate movable in a Y direction perpendicular to the first horizontal direction with respect to the substrate start-up plate, and the substrate start-up plate includes a second hollow portion in a region covered with the substrate. The first rising axis, and Serial to second central rising shaft, a the X plate horizontal laser processing method of a substrate to form a thin film in the laser processing apparatus of the substrate to form a thin film which is rotatable in the vertical direction to the,
A substrate carrying-in step for carrying the substrate into an apparatus for laser processing of the substrate on which the thin film is formed;
A substrate centering step for centering the substrate at a predetermined position on the Y plate;
A substrate fixing step for fixing the substrate to the predetermined position of the Y plate;
Depending on which one of the film surface and the substrate surface of the substrate is to be processed, the substrate rising plate of the X plate is centered on which of the first rising axis and the second rising axis. A substrate placement step of selecting whether to rotate at an arbitrary angle with respect to a horizontal plane, and rotating the substrate start-up plate around the selected axis to fix it at the arbitrary angle;
Controlling the amount of movement of the X plate in the X direction relative to the base plate and the amount of movement of the Y plate in the Y direction relative to the substrate start-up plate according to a predetermined processing region of the substrate; And a substrate processing step of irradiating a laser beam to the processing region of the substrate.

Images