JP2013149533A - Method and apparatus for treating organic film - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method for treating an organic film, which is capable of uniformly polymerizing and curing the whole of an organic film formed on one main surface of a substrate to be treated.SOLUTION: The method for treating an organic film includes a first step in which an organic film 103A formed on one main surface 102a of a substrate 102 to be treated is arranged in a pressure-reduced space and is polymerized and cured using light L emitted from plasma P.

Description

  The present invention relates to an organic film processing method and a processing apparatus.

  In the field of display devices in recent years, display panels using organic EL elements (organic EL displays) that enable realization of high quality and low price on a large screen are widely used. In an organic EL display, peripheral portions of two flat glass substrates are bonded together via a sealing film made of an adhesive material, and an organic EL element is arranged in a hollow part surrounded by the sealing film. Configured as follows.

  Since the organic EL element is vulnerable to moisture, the sealing film surrounding the entire element is required to have a function as a barrier film having high waterproofness and moisture resistance. As a sealing film (barrier film), an organic film based on an ultraviolet curable resin that can be polymerized and cured by irradiation with ultraviolet rays (ultraviolet light) at a relatively low temperature of 100 ° C. or lower and in a short time. Are mainly used (Patent Document 1). Irradiation of the organic film with ultraviolet rays is generally performed using a light source such as a halogen lamp (lamp) having a function as a heating means.

  By the way, when the area of the irradiated region of the organic film exceeds the ultraviolet irradiation range by the lamp, the organic film cannot be cured by simultaneously irradiating the entire irradiated region with ultraviolet light. Therefore, in order to irradiate the entire irradiated region with ultraviolet rays, it is necessary to move the lamp relative to the organic film and scan the irradiated region.

  However, when performing ultraviolet ray irradiation with lamp scanning, there is a difference in standby time after irradiation between the previously irradiated region and the subsequently irradiated region. Therefore, there is a possibility that the degree of cure of the organic film differs between remote irradiated areas. That is, when a light source such as a lamp is used, it is difficult to uniformly cure a large-area organic film. In addition, the larger the area of the irradiated region, the larger the proportion of the time consumed for scanning the lamp in the irradiation time, thereby preventing the reduction of the tact time.

JP 2004-79231 A

  The present invention has been made in consideration of the above points, and is an organic film that can uniformly polymerize and cure the entire organic film formed on one main surface of the substrate to be processed. A processing method is provided.

  The present invention also provides an organic film capable of irradiating ultraviolet light contained in radiation emitted from plasma without damaging the organic film formed on one main surface of the substrate to be processed. A membrane processing apparatus is provided.

  In the method for treating an organic film according to claim 1 of the present invention, an organic film formed on one main surface of a substrate to be treated is disposed in a reduced pressure space, and is cured by polymerization using radiation from plasma. A first step is included.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the organic film processing method according to the first aspect, wherein in the first step, the plasma is shielded between the plasma and the organic film, and radiation from the plasma is performed. Of the light, at least a member that transmits ultraviolet rays is arranged, and the organic film is irradiated with light that has passed through the member.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for treating an organic film according to the first or second aspect, wherein the organic film polymerized and cured in the first step is disposed under reduced pressure, and a silicon compound is formed on the organic film. The method further includes a second step of forming an inorganic film.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the organic film processing method according to the third aspect, further comprising a third step of forming an organic film on the inorganic film.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for processing an organic film according to the fourth aspect, wherein the first step, the second step, and the third step are repeated, and one main substrate of the substrate to be processed is obtained. A laminated structure is formed such that the organic film and the inorganic film are sequentially overlapped N times (N is a natural number) on the surface.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an organic film processing apparatus comprising: a chamber in which the inside can be depressurized; a supporting means for placing a substrate to be processed disposed in the chamber; and plasma in the chamber. In the chamber, the generator is disposed between the plasma and the substrate to be processed, shields the plasma from the substrate to be processed, and emits at least ultraviolet rays from the radiated light from the plasma. And a transparent member.

  According to the organic film processing method of the present invention, the organic film is polymerized and cured by irradiation with radiation from plasma. Since this plasma can be generated uniformly in a wide range, the emitted light generated by the generation of the plasma can be simultaneously irradiated to the organic film formed in a wide range. Therefore, unlike the case where the conventional method using lamp irradiation is used, there is no possibility that the degree of curing of the organic film differs between the different irradiated areas, and the entire organic film can be uniformly cured. Further, unlike the case where the conventional method is used, the lamp is moved relative to the organic film, and the time for scanning the irradiated area is not required, so that the tact time can be shortened.

  Further, according to the organic film processing apparatus of the present invention, the plasma is shielded from the substrate to be processed between the plasma generated in the chamber and the substrate to be processed, and among the radiated light from the plasma, And a member that transmits at least ultraviolet rays. Therefore, by forming an organic film on one main surface of the substrate to be processed opposite to the plasma, the organic film can be irradiated with ultraviolet rays contained in the radiation emitted from the plasma without damaging the plasma. Can be irradiated.

It is sectional drawing of the to-be-processed object explaining the structure of the processing apparatus of the organic film in this invention. It is a process flow explaining the processing method of the organic film in this invention. (A) It is sectional drawing of a to-be-processed object in the 1st process process of this invention. (B) It is a perspective view of a to-be-processed object in the 1st process of this invention. (A) It is sectional drawing of the to-be-processed object which passed through the 2nd process of this invention. (B) It is sectional drawing of the to-be-processed object which passed through the 1st process of this invention, the 2nd process, and the 3rd process in multiple times.

  Hereinafter, based on a preferred embodiment, the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

<First embodiment>
[Organic film processing equipment]
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the configuration of an organic film processing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. An organic film processing apparatus 100 includes a chamber (decompressed space) 101 whose inside can be depressurized and an object to be processed in which an organic film 103A is formed on one main surface 102a of the substrate 102 to be processed. A supporting means 104 for placing M1 and means (plasma generating means) E for generating plasma P are provided. Further, the organic film processing apparatus 100 is disposed between the generated plasma P and the substrate to be processed 102 in the chamber 101, shields the plasma P spreading toward the substrate to be processed 102, and emits radiation from the plasma P. Of the light L, a member 105 that transmits at least ultraviolet rays is provided.

  It is assumed that the object to be processed M1 is placed on the support means 104 so that one main surface 102a of the substrate to be processed is opposed to the plasma P generated in the chamber 101. The support means 104 is electrically grounded and serves as a lower electrode when the plasma P is generated. Further, the support means 104 includes means T for controlling the temperature of the substrate 102 to be processed.

  The organic film 103A is preferably based on an ultraviolet curable resin that can be polymerized and cured by irradiation with ultraviolet rays (ultraviolet light) at a relatively low temperature of 100 ° C. or lower and in a short time. For example, an acrylic monomer solution (acrylic solution) is used. The organic film 103A made of an acrylic solution is formed on one main surface 102a of the substrate to be processed using a method such as vapor deposition, coating, dropping, or ink jet.

  The plasma generating means E forms means 106 for evacuating the inside of the chamber 101 and an upper electrode when generating the plasma P, and means for introducing a reactive gas G such as nitrogen or argon into the chamber 101 (gas introducing means). 107 and a power supply 108 for applying a voltage to the gas introduction means (upper electrode) 107 at least. By applying a voltage to the upper electrode 107 using the power source 108 and generating a potential difference between the upper electrode 107 and the supporting means 104 forming the lower electrode, the reaction gas G can be brought into a plasma state.

[Organic film processing method]
A process flow A for realizing the organic film processing method according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the process flow A includes a process (first process) P1 for curing the organic film 103A formed on one main surface 102a of the substrate to be processed, and an inorganic film on the cured organic film 103B. The step (second step) P2 of forming 109 is sequentially included at least once.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 2, in the process flow A, after the process P1 and the process P2 are sequentially performed once, a new organic film is formed on the inorganic film formed through the process P2. The process P3 to be performed, the process P1 to be newly performed, and the process P2 may be sequentially repeated a plurality of times.

  A method of processing the organic film 103A formed on one main surface 102a of the substrate to be processed will be described using the organic film processing apparatus 100 shown in FIG. First, the first step for polymerizing and curing the organic film 103 will be described.

  First, the inside of the chamber 101 is evacuated, and the object to be processed M1 is placed on the support means 104. At this time, a liquid organic film 103A is formed on one main surface 102a of the substrate to be processed, which is a surface to be processed, by a method such as vapor deposition, coating, dropping, or ink jetting.

  Next, in the chamber 101, a reaction gas G containing nitrogen element or argon element is introduced into a space between the gas introduction means 107 and the member 105, and the upper electrode (gas introduction) is introduced using the plasma generation means E. Means) A voltage is applied between the 107 and the lower electrode (support means) 104. Thereby, the atmosphere in the chamber 101 is in a state (plasma state) in which the elements constituting the reaction gas G are ionized and the plasma P is generated.

  FIG. 3A is an enlarged view of the region R in the cross section of the organic film processing apparatus 100 shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 3A, the organic film processing apparatus 100 has a configuration in which the plasma atmosphere (plasma) P generated in the chamber 101 is shielded by the member 105 and cannot reach the organic film 103A. ing. And the ultraviolet-ray contained in the radiated light L which generate | occur | produces with the plasma P permeate | transmits the member 105, and is irradiated to the organic film 103A, and the organic film 103A irradiated with the ultraviolet-ray is solid state from a liquid state by photopolymerization reaction. Is polymerized and cured.

  Here, in order to uniformly polymerize and cure the entire organic film 103A formed on the one main surface 102a of the substrate to be processed, it is necessary to uniformly irradiate the entire organic film 103A with ultraviolet rays. . Therefore, one main surface 105a of the member facing the substrate to be processed 102 and the other main surface 105b of the member facing the plasma P may be arranged in parallel with the one main surface 102a of the substrate to be processed. desirable.

  Further, in order to prevent the organic film 103A formed on the one main surface 102a of the substrate to be processed from being damaged by the plasma P, the object to be processed M1 is prevented from being exposed to the plasma P. It is necessary to have a shape that shields the plasma P that is about to spread. That is, the area of both main surfaces 105a and 105b of the member is required to be at least larger than the area of the region where the organic film 103A is formed in one main surface 102a of the substrate to be processed. The member 105 desirably has a thickness (1 [μm] or more) at least so that the plasma P does not pass between the other main surface 105b of the member 105 and the one main surface 105a.

  FIG. 3B is an enlarged perspective view showing the configuration of the region R shown in FIG. 1 so that the other main surface 105b side of the member can be seen. The emitted light L from the plasma is transmitted through the member 105 in the thickness direction, and is simultaneously irradiated onto the entire organic film 103A constituting the surface to be processed of the object to be processed M1. If the area within the chamber 101 is within the range, even if the area of the surface to be processed is large, the member 105 having an area larger than that is selected and used, so that radiated light including ultraviolet rays can be emitted to the entire organic film 103A. Can be uniformly and simultaneously irradiated.

  In order to prevent the organic film 103A from being exposed to the plasma P, the member 105 may have such a size that the plasma P does not go around from the other main surface 105b side to the one main surface 105a side. desirable. Further, even if the plasma P wraps around the one main surface 105a side of the member, the object to be processed M1 is disposed at a position close enough not to contact the member 105 in order to prevent reaching the organic film 103A. It is desirable.

  Subsequently, the second step of forming a film made of an inorganic material containing a desired silicon compound on the organic film 103B cured in the first step will be described.

  First, the object M1 that has undergone the first step is transferred from the chamber 101 into a film formation chamber that performs the second step, and the chamber is evacuated. At this time, an organic film 103B that has been polymerized and cured by the processing in the first step is formed on one main surface 102a of the substrate to be processed. Further, the non-processed surface of the object to be processed M1 is supported by the support means.

  Next, a reactive gas containing a silicon compound is introduced into a region near the object to be processed M1 in the film formation chamber. Further, the support means is heated using the temperature control means, and the target object M1 (organic film 103B) is controlled to have a desired temperature via the support means. Thus, the reactive gas thermally reacts with the organic film 103B, and a film (inorganic film) made of a silicon compound is formed on the organic film 103B.

  FIG. 4A shows a cross-sectional configuration of the object M2 that has undergone the second step. The target object M2 is formed by sequentially laminating an organic film 103B and an inorganic film 109 on one main surface 102a of a target substrate. By laminating the inorganic film 109, the barrier property of the organic film can be further enhanced.

  In addition, with respect to the to-be-processed object M2 shown to Fig.4 (a), the process (3rd process) of forming a new organic film on the inorganic film 109, the 1st process mentioned above, the 2nd process mentioned above. 4 is repeated N times (N is a natural number) to obtain a target object M3 in which a plurality of layers made of an organic film and an inorganic film are stacked as shown in FIG. 4B. The laminated portion of the object to be processed M3 has a laminated structure (103L1, 109L1, 103L2, 109L2,... 103LN so that the organic film and the inorganic film overlap the N main surface 102a of the substrate to be processed N times in order. 109LN), and has a higher barrier property than the laminated portion of the object to be processed M2 shown in FIG.

  As described above, according to the method for treating an organic film according to the first embodiment, the organic film is polymerized and cured by irradiation with radiation from plasma. Since this plasma can be generated uniformly in a wide range, the emitted light generated by the generation of the plasma can be simultaneously irradiated to the organic film formed in a wide range. Therefore, unlike the case where the conventional method using lamp irradiation is used, there is no possibility that the degree of curing of the organic film differs between the different irradiated areas, and the entire organic film can be uniformly cured. Further, unlike the case where the conventional method is used, the lamp is moved relative to the organic film, and the time for scanning the irradiated area is not required, so that the tact time can be shortened.

  In addition, according to the organic film processing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment, the plasma is shielded against the substrate to be processed between the plasma P generated in the chamber 101 and the substrate 102, and the plasma The member which permeate | transmits an ultraviolet-ray at least among the radiated light from is provided. Therefore, by forming an organic film on one main surface of the substrate to be processed opposite to the plasma, the organic film can be irradiated with ultraviolet rays contained in the radiation emitted from the plasma without damaging the plasma. Can be irradiated.

  In the chamber 101, when the substrate to be processed 102 can be disposed at a position away from the plasma P so that the organic film 104 is not affected by the plasma P, the member 105 is not disposed. The same effects as those of the first embodiment described above can be obtained.

  The present invention can be widely applied to the case where the barrier property of a sealing film constituting a display device such as an organic EL display or a plasma display is increased.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Processing apparatus, 101 ... Chamber, 102 ... Substrate to be processed,
102a ... main surface, 103A, 103B ... organic film, 104 ... support means,
105: member, 109: inorganic film, E: plasma generating means, L: emitted light, P: plasma.

Claims (6)

  An organic film processing method comprising a first step, wherein an organic film formed on one main surface of a substrate to be processed is placed in a reduced pressure space and polymerized and cured using radiation from plasma. .   In the first step, the plasma is shielded between the plasma and the organic film, and a member that transmits at least ultraviolet light out of the radiated light from the plasma is disposed and passed through the member. The organic film processing method according to claim 1, wherein the organic film is irradiated with light.   2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising a second step of disposing the organic film polymerized and cured in the first step under a reduced pressure and forming an inorganic film made of a silicon compound on the organic film. 2. The method for treating an organic film according to 2.   The organic film processing method according to claim 3, further comprising a third step of forming an organic film on the inorganic film. Repeat the first step, the second step, and the third step,
5. The organic film processing according to claim 4, wherein the organic film and the inorganic film are sequentially stacked N times (N is a natural number) in order on one main surface of the substrate to be processed. Method. A chamber capable of depressurizing the interior;
A supporting means for placing a substrate to be processed disposed in the chamber;
Means for generating plasma in the chamber;
A member that is disposed between the plasma and the substrate to be processed in the chamber, shields the plasma from the substrate to be processed, and transmits at least ultraviolet light among the emitted light from the plasma; An organic film processing apparatus comprising at least

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