CN108227408B - Exposure apparatus and exposure method - Google Patents

Abstract

Provided are a substrate processing apparatus, a device manufacturing method, and a mask, which can produce a high-quality substrate with high productivity. The disclosed device is provided with: a mask support member that supports a pattern of a mask so as to be curved along a first surface having a cylindrical surface shape with a predetermined curvature in an illumination area; a substrate support member that supports the substrate along a predetermined second surface in the projection region; and a drive mechanism that rotates the mask support member so as to move the pattern of the mask in a predetermined scanning exposure direction and moves the substrate support member so as to move the substrate in the scanning exposure direction, wherein the mask support member satisfies 1.3. ltoreq. L/phi. ltoreq.3.8 where phi is a diameter of the first surface and L is a length of the first surface in a direction orthogonal to the scanning exposure direction.

Description

Exposure apparatus and exposure method

The present invention is a divisional application of the invention application having an international application date of 26/3/2014, an international application number of PCT/JP2014/058590, a national application number of 201480037519.5 at the stage of entering the chinese country, and an invention name of "substrate processing apparatus, device manufacturing method, and cylindrical mask".

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus that projects a pattern of a mask onto a substrate and exposes the pattern on the substrate, a device manufacturing method, and a cylindrical mask used for the apparatus.

Background

There is a device manufacturing system for manufacturing display devices such as liquid crystal displays, and various devices such as semiconductors. The device manufacturing system includes a substrate processing apparatus such as an exposure apparatus. The substrate processing apparatus described in patent document l projects an image of a pattern formed on a mask arranged in an illumination area onto a substrate or the like arranged in a projection area, and exposes the pattern on the substrate. The mask used in the substrate processing apparatus includes a planar mask, a cylindrical mask, and the like.

Documents of the prior art

Patent document

Patent document 1: japanese laid-open patent publication No. 2007-299918

The substrate processing apparatus can continuously perform exposure on a substrate by making a mask into a cylindrical shape and rotating the mask. In addition, as a substrate processing apparatus, there is a roll-to-roll (roll) system in which a substrate is formed into a long sheet and continuously fed to a projection area. In this way, the substrate processing apparatus can rotate the cylindrical mask, and can continuously convey both the substrate and the mask by using a roll-to-roll method as a method of conveying the substrate.

Here, the substrate processing apparatus is generally required to efficiently expose a pattern on a substrate to improve productivity. This is also the case when a cylindrical mask is used as the mask.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention provides a substrate processing apparatus, a device manufacturing method and a cylindrical mask, which can produce high-quality substrates with high productivity.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate processing apparatus comprising: a projection optical system that projects a light flux from a pattern of a mask arranged in an illumination region of illumination light onto a projection region where a substrate is arranged; a mask support member that supports a pattern of a mask so as to be curved along a first surface having a cylindrical surface shape with a predetermined curvature in an illumination area; a substrate support member that supports the substrate along a predetermined second surface in the projection region; and a drive mechanism that rotates the mask support member so as to move the pattern of the mask in a predetermined scanning exposure direction and moves the substrate support member so as to move the substrate in the scanning exposure direction, wherein the mask support member satisfies 1.3. ltoreq. L/phi. ltoreq.3.8 where phi is a diameter of the first surface and L is a length of the first surface in a direction orthogonal to the scanning exposure direction.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a device manufacturing method comprising: forming a pattern of the reticle on the substrate using the substrate processing apparatus of the first aspect; and supplying the substrate to the substrate processing apparatus.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a cylindrical photomask having a cylindrical base material in which a mask pattern for an electronic device is formed along a cylindrical outer peripheral surface and which is rotatable about a center line, the outer peripheral surface having a diameter Φ and a length La of the outer peripheral surface in a direction of the center line, wherein a ratio L/Φ of the diameter Φ to the length L is set to be in a range of 1.3 to L/Φ to 3.8 in a range of L to La, where L is a maximum length of the mask pattern that can be formed on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical base material in the direction of the center line.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a cylindrical mask which is attached to an exposure apparatus so as to be rotatable about a predetermined center line and in which a mask pattern is formed along a cylindrical surface having a fixed radius with respect to the center line, wherein n (n ≧ 2) rectangular mask regions for display panels are formed on the cylindrical surface so as to be arranged at intervals Sx in a circumferential direction of the cylindrical surface, the mask regions including a display screen region having a long side dimension Ld, a short side dimension Lc, and an aspect ratio Asp of Ld/Lc, and a peripheral circuit region provided adjacent to a periphery thereof, and when a dimension L in the long side direction of the mask region is set to e of the long side dimension Ld of the display screen region₁Multiple (e)₁Not less than 1), setting the dimension of the short side direction of the light cover area as e of the short side dimension Lc of the display screen area₂Multiple (e)₂1) or more, the length of the cylindrical surface in the direction of the center line is set to the dimension L or more, and pi phi n (e) is set when the diameter of the cylindrical surface is phi and the circumferential ratio is pi₂Lc + Sx), and further, the diameter Φ, the number n, and the interval Sx are set so that a ratio L/Φ of the dimension L to the diameter Φ is in a range of 1.3 or more and L/Φ or less and 3.8 or less.

Effects of the invention

According to the aspect of the present invention, by setting the relationship between the diameter Φ and the length L of the cylindrical mask shape held by the mask support member or the cylindrical shape of the pattern formed on the mask to the above range, the exposure and transfer of the device pattern can be efficiently performed with high productivity. Further, by setting the relationship between the diameter Φ and the length L to the above range, even when a plurality of patterns for display panels are arranged along the circumferential surface of the cylindrical mask, it is possible to efficiently arrange panels of various display sizes.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an overall configuration of a device manufacturing system according to a first embodiment.

Fig. 2 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of an exposure apparatus (substrate processing apparatus) according to the first embodiment.

Fig. 3 is a diagram showing the arrangement of the illumination area and the projection area of the exposure apparatus shown in fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a diagram showing the configuration of the illumination optical system and the projection optical system of the exposure apparatus shown in fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a diagram showing a state of an illumination beam irradiated on the cylindrical mask and a state of a projection beam generated from the cylindrical mask.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view showing a schematic structure of a cylindrical wheel and a mask constituting a cylindrical mask.

Fig. 7 is an expanded view showing an arrangement example in the case where a display panel mask is arranged on one surface of a mask surface of a cylindrical mask.

Fig. 8 is an expanded view showing an arrangement example in which three masks of the same size are arranged in a row on the mask surface of the cylindrical mask, and three surfaces are arranged.

Fig. 9 is an expanded view showing an arrangement example in which four masks of the same size are arranged in a row on the mask surface of a cylindrical mask.

Fig. 10 is an expanded view showing an arrangement example in which masks having the same size are arranged in two rows and two columns on the mask surface of a cylindrical mask on four sides.

Fig. 11 is an expanded view illustrating an example of arrangement of both sides of a mask for a display panel having an aspect ratio of 2: 1.

FIG. 12 is a graph showing the relationship between the diameter of a simulated cylindrical mask and the width of an exposure slit under a specific defocus tolerance.

Fig. 13 is an expanded view showing a specific example of a case where a mask for a 60-inch display panel is arranged on one surface.

Fig. 14 is an expanded view showing an example of arrangement of both surfaces of the mask.

Fig. 15 is an expanded view showing a first arrangement example of both sides of the arrangement of the mask for a 32-inch display panel.

Fig. 16 is an expanded view showing a second arrangement example of both sides of the arrangement of the mask for the 32-inch display panel.

Fig. 17 is an expanded view showing a specific example of a case where a mask for a 32-inch display panel is arranged on one surface.

Fig. 18 is an expanded view showing a specific arrangement example of three surfaces of the arrangement of the mask for the 32-inch display panel.

Fig. 19 is an expanded view showing a specific arrangement example of three surfaces of the arrangement of the mask for the 37-inch display panel.

Fig. 20 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of an exposure apparatus (substrate processing apparatus) according to the second embodiment.

Fig. 21 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of an exposure apparatus (substrate processing apparatus) according to a third embodiment.

Fig. 22 is a flowchart showing a device manufacturing method performed by the device manufacturing system.

Detailed Description

The embodiments (embodiments) for carrying out the present invention are specifically described below with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited to the contents described in the following embodiments. The constituent elements described below include, of course, elements that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art and substantially the same elements. The following constituent elements can be appropriately combined. Various omissions, substitutions, and changes in the components can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. For example, in the following embodiments, a case where a flexible display is manufactured will be described as an example of a device, but the device is not limited to this. As the device, a wiring substrate on which a wiring pattern formed of a copper foil or the like is formed, a substrate on which a plurality of semiconductor devices (transistors, diodes, and the like) are formed, and the like can be manufactured.

[ first embodiment ]

In the first embodiment, a substrate processing apparatus that performs exposure processing on a substrate is an exposure apparatus. The exposure apparatus is incorporated in a device manufacturing system that performs various processes on an exposed substrate to manufacture a device. First, a device manufacturing system will be explained.

< System for manufacturing device >

Fig. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a device manufacturing system according to a first embodiment. The device manufacturing system 1 shown in fig. 1 is a manufacturing line (flexible display manufacturing line) that manufactures a flexible display as a device. As the flexible display, for example, an organic EL display or the like is available. The device manufacturing system 1 is a so-called Roll-to-Roll (Roll to Roll) system in which a flexible substrate P is fed from a supply Roll FR1 that winds up the substrate P into a Roll, various kinds of processing are continuously applied to the fed substrate P, and the processed substrate P is wound as a flexible device onto a recovery Roll FR 2. In the device manufacturing system 1 of the first embodiment, there is shown an example in which the substrate P as a film-like sheet is fed out from the supply roll FR1, and the substrate P fed out from the supply roll FR1 is wound around the recovery roll FR2 after passing through n processing apparatuses U1, U2, U3, U4, U5, and … Un in this order. First, a substrate P to be processed in the device manufacturing system 1 will be described.

For example, a resin film, a foil (foil) made of a metal such as stainless steel or an alloy, or the like is used as the substrate P. Examples of the material of the resin film include one or more of a polyethylene resin, a polypropylene resin, a polyester resin, a vinyl copolymer resin, a polyvinyl chloride resin, cellulose resin, a polyamide resin, a polyimide resin, a polycarbonate resin, a polystyrene resin, and a vinyl acetate resin.

The substrate P is preferably made of a material having a significantly low thermal expansion coefficient, for example, so that the amount of deformation due to heat in various processes performed on the substrate P can be substantially ignored. The thermal expansion coefficient may be set to be smaller than a threshold value corresponding to a process temperature or the like by, for example, mixing an inorganic filler into the resin film. The inorganic filler may be, for example, titanium oxide, zinc oxide, aluminum oxide, silicon oxide, or the like. The substrate P may be a single layer of an extra thin glass having a thickness of about 100 μm manufactured by a float method or the like, or may be a laminate in which the above-described resin film, foil, or the like is bonded to the extra thin glass.

The substrate P thus configured becomes a supply roll FR1 by being wound into a roll shape, and the supply roll FR1 is mounted on the device manufacturing system 1. The device manufacturing system 1 mounted with the supply reel FR1 repeatedly executes various processes for manufacturing one device on the substrate P fed out from the supply reel FR 1. Thereby, the processed substrate P is in a state where a plurality of devices are connected. That is, the substrate P fed from the supply roll FR1 is a substrate for disposing a plurality of surfaces. The substrate P may be a substrate whose surface is modified and activated by a predetermined pretreatment, or a substrate whose surface is formed with a fine barrier rib structure (uneven structure) for precise patterning by an imprint method.

The processed substrate P is wound into a roll and collected as a collection roll FR 2. The recovery roll FR2 is attached to a cutting device not shown. The dicing apparatus mounted with the recovery roll FR2 divides (cuts) the processed substrate P into a plurality of devices. The dimension of the substrate P is, for example, about 10cm to 2m in the width direction (short-side direction) and 10m or more in the longitudinal direction (long-side direction). Further, the size of the substrate P is not limited to the above size.

In fig. 1, an orthogonal coordinate system in which the X direction, the Y direction, and the Z direction are orthogonal is formed. The X direction is a direction connecting the supply roll FR1 and the recovery roll FR2 in the horizontal plane, and is the left-right direction in fig. 1. The Y direction is a direction orthogonal to the X direction in the horizontal plane and is the front-rear direction in fig. 1. The Y direction is the axial direction of the supply spool FR1 and the recovery spool FR 2. The Z direction is a vertical direction and is a vertical direction in fig. 1.

The device manufacturing system 1 includes: a substrate supply device 2 for supplying a substrate P; processing apparatuses U1 to Un that apply various processes to the substrate P supplied from the substrate supply apparatus 2; a substrate recovery device 4 for recovering the substrates P processed by the processing devices U1 to Un; and a host control device 5 for controlling the devices of the device manufacturing system 1.

A supply roll FR1 is rotatably attached to the substrate supply device 2. The substrate supply apparatus 2 includes a drive roller DR1 for feeding out the substrate P from the supply roll FR1 mounted thereon, and an edge position controller EPC1 for adjusting the position of the substrate P in the width direction (Y direction). The driving rollers DR1 rotate while sandwiching both front and back surfaces of the substrate P, and feed the substrate P from the supply roll FR1 in the transport direction toward the recovery roll FR2, thereby supplying the substrate P to the processing apparatuses U1 to Un. At this time, the edge position controller EPC1 moves the substrate P in the width direction so that the position of the end (edge) of the substrate P in the width direction falls within a range of about ± ten and several μm to about ± several tens μm with respect to the target position, thereby correcting the position of the substrate P in the width direction.

A recovery roll FR2 is rotatably attached to the substrate recovery apparatus 4. The substrate recovery apparatus 4 includes a drive roller DR2 for pulling the processed substrate P toward the recovery roll FR2, and an edge position controller EPC2 for adjusting the position of the substrate P in the width direction (Y direction). The substrate recovery apparatus 4 rotates while holding both front and back surfaces of the substrate P by the driving rollers DR2, pulls the substrate P in the transport direction, and rotates the recovery reel FR2 to wind up the substrate P. At this time, the edge position controller EPC2 has the same structure as the edge position controller EPC1, and corrects the position of the substrate P in the width direction so as to avoid irregularity in the width direction of the end (edge) of the substrate P in the width direction.

The processing apparatus U1 is a coating apparatus that coats the photosensitive functional liquid on the surface of the substrate P supplied from the substrate supply apparatus 2. Examples of the photosensitive functional liquid include a photoresist, a photosensitive silane coupling agent material (e.g., a photosensitive lyophilic/lyophobic modifier, a photosensitive plating reducing material), and a UV curable resin liquid. The processing apparatus U1 is provided with a coating mechanism Gp1 and a drying mechanism Gp2 in this order from the upstream side in the conveyance direction of the substrate P. The coating mechanism Gp1 has a platen roller R1 that winds the substrate P, and a coating roller R2 that faces the platen roller R1. The coating mechanism Gp1 nips the substrate P by the platen roller R1 and the coating roller R2 in a state where the substrate P is wound around the platen roller R1. Then, the coating mechanism Gp1 applies the photosensitive functional liquid to the coating roller R2 while moving the substrate P in the conveyance direction by rotating the platen roller R1 and the coating roller R2. The drying mechanism Gp2 blows drying air such as hot air or dry air to remove solutes (solvents or water) contained in the photosensitive functional liquid, and dries the substrate P coated with the photosensitive functional liquid, thereby forming a photosensitive functional layer on the substrate P.

The processing apparatus U2 is a heating apparatus for heating the substrate P conveyed from the processing apparatus U1 to a predetermined temperature (e.g., about 10 to 120 degrees celsius) in order to stabilize the photosensitive functional layer formed on the surface of the substrate P. The processing apparatus U2 is provided with a heating chamber HA1 and a cooling chamber HA2 in this order from the upstream side in the conveyance direction of the substrate P. The heating chamber HA1 is provided with a plurality of rollers and a plurality of air reversing rods (air turn bars) inside thereof, and the plurality of rollers and the plurality of air reversing rods constitute a conveyance path of the substrate P. The plurality of rollers are provided in rolling contact with the back surface of the substrate P, and the plurality of air reversing levers are provided in a non-contact state on the front surface side of the substrate P. The plurality of rollers and the plurality of air reversing bars are arranged in a zigzag conveyance path in order to lengthen the conveyance path of the substrate P. The substrate P passing through the heating chamber HA1 is heated to a predetermined temperature while being conveyed along a zigzag conveyance path. The cooling chamber HA2 cools the substrate P to the ambient temperature so that the temperature of the substrate P heated in the heating chamber HA1 matches the ambient temperature of the subsequent process (the processing apparatus U3). The cooling chamber HA2 HAs a plurality of rollers provided therein, and the plurality of rollers are arranged in a zigzag conveyance path for increasing the conveyance path of the substrate P, similarly to the heating chamber HA 1. The substrate P passing through the cooling chamber HA2 is cooled while being conveyed along a zigzag conveyance path. A driving roller DR3 is provided on the downstream side of the cooling chamber HA2 in the transport direction, and the driving roller DR3 rotates while holding the substrate P passing through the cooling chamber HA2, thereby supplying the substrate P toward the processing apparatus U3.

The processing apparatus (substrate processing apparatus) U3 is an exposure apparatus that projects and exposes a pattern of a display circuit, wiring, or the like onto a substrate (photosensitive substrate) P provided from the processing apparatus U2 and having a photosensitive functional layer formed on a surface thereof. Specifically, as will be described later in detail, the processing apparatus U3 illuminates the reflective cylindrical mask M (cylindrical wheel 21) with an illumination light beam, and projects and exposes the projection light beam obtained by reflecting the illumination light beam on the mask M onto the substrate P. The processing apparatus U3 includes a drive roller DR4 for feeding the substrate P supplied from the processing apparatus U2 to the downstream side in the transport direction, and an edge position controller EPC3 for adjusting the position of the substrate P in the width direction (Y direction). The driving rollers DR4 rotate while sandwiching both front and back surfaces of the substrate P, and feed out the substrate P to the downstream side in the transport direction, thereby supplying the substrate P to the rotating drum (substrate supporting drum) 25 that stably supports the substrate P at the exposure position. The edge position controller EPC3 has the same configuration as the edge position controller EPC1, and corrects the position of the substrate P in the width direction so that the width direction of the substrate P at the exposure position becomes the target position.

The processing apparatus U3 includes a buffer section DL having two sets of driving rollers DR6 and DR7 for feeding the substrate P to the downstream side in the transport direction while slack is provided to the substrate P after exposure. The two sets of driving rollers DR6 and DR7 are disposed at a predetermined interval in the conveyance direction of the substrate P. The drive roller DR6 rotates while nipping the upstream side of the conveyed substrate P, and the drive roller DR7 rotates while nipping the downstream side of the conveyed substrate P, thereby supplying the substrate P to the processing apparatus U4. At this time, since the substrate P is slackened, it is possible to absorb the change in the conveyance speed occurring on the downstream side in the conveyance direction from the driving roller DR7, and to eliminate the influence of the change in the conveyance speed on the exposure processing of the substrate P. In the processing apparatus U3, alignment microscopes AMG1 and AMG2 for detecting alignment marks formed in advance on the substrate P and reference patterns formed on a part of the outer peripheral surface of the rotary drum (substrate support drum) 25 are provided in order to align (align) a part of an image of a mask pattern of the cylindrical mask M (hereinafter, also simply referred to as mask M) with respect to the substrate P.

The processing apparatus U4 is a wet processing apparatus that performs wet development processing, electroless plating processing, and the like on the exposed substrate P conveyed from the processing apparatus U3. The processing apparatus U4 has three processing tanks BT1, BT2, BT3, which are staged in the vertical direction (Z direction), and a plurality of rollers for conveying the substrate P in the inside thereof. The plurality of rollers are disposed so that the insides of the three processing tanks BT1, BT2, BT3 form a conveyance path through which the substrates P pass in order. A driving roller DR8 is provided on the downstream side of the processing bath BT3 in the transport direction, and the driving roller DR8 rotates while pinching the substrate P having passed through the processing bath BT3, thereby supplying the substrate P to the processing apparatus U5.

Although not shown, the processing apparatus U5 is a drying apparatus that dries the substrate P conveyed from the processing apparatus U4. The processing apparatus U5 removes the liquid droplets adhering to the substrate P by wet processing in the processing apparatus U4, and adjusts the moisture content of the substrate P. The substrate P dried by the processing apparatus U5 is further transported to the processing apparatus Un after passing through a plurality of processing apparatuses. After the substrate P is processed by the processing apparatus Un, the substrate P is wound around a recovery roll FR2 of the substrate recovery apparatus 4.

The host controller 5 collectively controls the substrate supply device 2, the substrate recovery device 4, and the plurality of processing devices U1 to Un. The host control device 5 controls the substrate supply device 2 and the substrate recovery device 4 to transfer the substrate P from the substrate supply device 2 to the substrate recovery device 4. The host control device 5 controls the plurality of processing devices U1 to Un in synchronization with the conveyance of the substrate P to execute various processes on the substrate P.

< Exposure apparatus (substrate processing apparatus) >

Next, the configuration of an exposure apparatus (substrate processing apparatus) as the processing apparatus U3 according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to fig. 2 to 5. Fig. 2 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of an exposure apparatus (substrate processing apparatus) according to the first embodiment. Fig. 3 is a diagram showing the arrangement of the illumination area and the projection area of the exposure apparatus shown in fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a diagram showing the configuration of the illumination optical system and the projection optical system of the exposure apparatus shown in fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a diagram showing states of an illumination beam irradiated on the mask and a projection beam emitted from the mask.

The exposure device U3 shown in fig. 2 is a so-called scanning exposure device that projects and exposes an image of a mask pattern formed on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical mask M onto the surface of the substrate P while conveying the substrate P in the conveying direction. In fig. 2, an orthogonal coordinate system in which the X direction, the Y direction, and the Z direction are orthogonal is formed, and is the same orthogonal coordinate system as in fig. 1.

First, a mask M (cylindrical mask M in fig. 1) used in the exposure device U3 will be described. The mask M is a reflective mask using a metal cylinder, for example. The pattern of the mask M is formed on a cylindrical base member having an outer peripheral surface (circumferential surface) with a radius of curvature Rm centered on a first axis AX1 extending in the Y direction. The peripheral surface of the mask M is a mask surface (first surface) P1 on which a predetermined mask pattern is formed. The mask surface P1 includes a high reflection portion that reflects the light beam in a predetermined direction with high efficiency, and a reflection suppressing portion (low reflection portion) that reflects the light beam in a predetermined direction without reflection or with low efficiency. The mask pattern is formed of a high reflection portion and a reflection suppressing portion. Here, the reflection suppressing unit may reduce the light reflected in the predetermined direction. Therefore, the reflection suppressing portion can be formed of a material that absorbs light, a material that transmits light, or a material that diffracts light in a direction other than the specific direction. As the mask M having the above-described structure, a mask made of a cylindrical base material of metal such as aluminum or SUS can be used as the exposure device U3. Therefore, the exposure device U3 can perform exposure using an inexpensive mask.

The mask M may be formed with the entire or a part of the panel pattern corresponding to one display device, or may be formed with the panel pattern corresponding to a plurality of display devices. The mask M may be a mask having a plurality of surfaces arranged so that a plurality of panel patterns are repeatedly formed in the circumferential direction around the first axis AX1, or a mask having a plurality of surfaces arranged so that a plurality of mini-panel patterns are repeatedly formed in the direction parallel to the first axis AX 1. The mask M may be a mask having a plurality of surfaces arranged with different-size patterns, in which a pattern for a panel of a first display device and a pattern for a panel of a second display device having a different size from the first display device are formed. The mask M is not limited to a cylindrical shape as long as it has a circumferential surface with a radius of curvature Rm around the first axis AX 1. For example, the mask M may be an arc-shaped plate having a circumferential surface. The mask M may be a thin plate, or the thin plate may be bent to have a circumferential surface.

Next, the exposure apparatus U3 shown in fig. 2 will be described. The exposure apparatus U3 includes the above-described drive rollers DR4, DR6, DR7, substrate support tube 25, edge position controller EPC3, collimator microscopes AMG1 and AMG2, as well as a mask holding mechanism 11, a substrate support mechanism 12, an illumination optical system IL, a projection optical system PL, and a lower-level controller 16. The exposure device U3 irradiates illumination light emitted from the light source device 13 onto a mask surface P1 having a pattern formed on the mask M supported by the mask holding cylinder 21 (hereinafter also referred to as a cylindrical wheel 21) of the mask holding mechanism 11 via the illumination optical system IL and a part of the projection optical system PL, and projects a projection light beam (imaging light) reflected on the mask surface P1 of the mask M onto the substrate P supported by the substrate supporting cylinder 25 of the substrate supporting mechanism 12 via the projection optical system PL.

The lower control device 16 controls each part of the exposure device U3, and causes each part to execute processing. The lower level controller 16 may be a part or all of the upper level controller 5 of the device manufacturing system 1. The lower-level controller 16 may be another device that is controlled by the upper-level controller 5 and is different from the upper-level controller 5. The lower-level control device 16 includes, for example, a computer.

The mask holding mechanism 11 includes a cylindrical wheel 21 for holding the mask M, and a first driving unit 22 for rotating the cylindrical wheel 21. The cylindrical wheel 21 holds the mask M in a cylindrical shape having a radius of curvature Rm around the first axis AX1 as a rotation center. The first drive unit 22 is connected to the lower position controller 16, and rotates the cylindrical wheel 21 about the first axis AX 1.

The cylindrical wheel 21 of the mask holding mechanism 11 has a mask pattern directly formed on its outer peripheral surface by the high reflection portion and the low reflection portion, but is not limited to this configuration. The cylindrical wheel 21 as the mask holding mechanism 11 may also hold a thin plate-like reflective mask M by winding it around its outer circumferential surface. The cylindrical wheel 21 as the mask holding mechanism 11 may detachably hold a plate-like reflective mask M bent in an arc shape with a radius Rm on the outer circumferential surface of the cylindrical wheel 21.

The substrate support mechanism 12 includes: a substrate support cylinder 25 for supporting the substrate P; a second driving unit 26 for rotating the substrate support cylinder 25; a pair of air turnover bars ATB1, ATB 2; and a pair of guide rollers 27, 28. The substrate support cylinder 25 is formed in a cylindrical shape having an outer peripheral surface (circumferential surface) with a curvature radius Rp centered on a second axis AX2 extending in the Y direction. Here, the first axis AX1 and the second axis AX2 are parallel to each other, and a plane passing through (including) the first axis AX1 and the second axis AX2 is a center plane CL. A part of the circumferential surface of the substrate support cylinder 25 becomes a support surface P2 for supporting the substrate P. That is, the substrate support drum 25 stably supports the substrate P by winding the substrate P around the support surface P2 to bend the substrate P into a cylindrical surface. The second drive unit 26 is connected to the lower position controller 16, and rotates the substrate support cylinder 25 about the second axis AX 2. The pair of air inverting levers ATB1, ATB2 are provided on the upstream side and the downstream side in the conveyance direction of the substrate P, respectively, from the pair of guide rollers 27, 28 with the substrate support tube 25 therebetween. The guide roller 27 guides the substrate P conveyed from the drive roller DR4 to the substrate support tube 25 via the air inverting lever ATB1, and the guide roller 28 guides the substrate P conveyed from the air inverting lever ATB2 via the substrate support tube 25 to the drive roller DR 6.

The substrate support mechanism 12 conveys the substrate P introduced into the substrate support cylinder 25 at a predetermined speed in the longitudinal direction (X direction) while being supported by the support surface P2 of the substrate support cylinder 25 by rotating the substrate support cylinder 25 by the second drive unit 26.

At this time, the lower-level controller 16 connected to the first and second driving units 22 and 26 rotates the cylindrical wheel 21 and the substrate support cylinder 25 synchronously at a predetermined rotation speed ratio, thereby continuously and repeatedly scanning and exposing the projected image of the mask pattern formed on the mask plane P1 of the mask M onto the surface (plane curved along the circumferential surface) of the substrate P wound around the support plane P2 of the substrate support cylinder 25. The exposure device U3, the first drive unit 22, and the second drive unit 26 serve as the movement mechanism of the present embodiment. In the exposure apparatus U3 shown in fig. 2, a portion located upstream of the guide roller 27 in the conveyance direction of the substrate P serves as a substrate supply unit that supplies the substrate P to the support surface P2 of the substrate support drum 25. The substrate supply unit may be directly provided with a supply roll FR1 shown in fig. 1. Similarly, a portion located on the downstream side of the guide roller 28 in the conveyance direction of the substrate P serves as a substrate recovery portion for recovering the substrate P from the support surface P2 of the substrate support cylinder 25. The substrate recovery unit may be directly provided with a recovery roll FR2 shown in fig. 1.

The light source device 13 emits an illumination light beam EL1 for illuminating the mask M. The light source device 13 includes a light source 31 and a light guide member 32. The light source 31 is a light source that emits light of a predetermined wavelength. The light source 31 is, for example, a lamp light source such as a mercury lamp, a gas laser light source such as an excimer laser, or a solid laser light source such as a laser diode or a Light Emitting Diode (LED). The illumination light emitted from the light source 31 can be, for example, a bright line (g-line, h-line, i-line) in the ultraviolet region when a mercury lamp is used, or can be a deep ultraviolet light (DUV light) such as a KrF excimer laser (wavelength 248nm) or an ArF excimer laser (wavelength 193nm) when an excimer laser light source is used. Here, the light source 31 preferably emits an illumination light beam EL1 including a wavelength shorter than the i-line (wavelength of 365 nm). As such an illumination light beam EL1, a laser beam (wavelength of 355nm) emitted as the third harmonic of the YAG laser and a laser beam (wavelength of 266nm) emitted as the fourth harmonic of the YAG laser can be used.

The light guide member 32 guides the illumination light beam EL1 emitted from the light source 31 to the illumination optical system IL. The light guide member 32 is formed of an optical fiber, a relay module using a mirror, or the like. When a plurality of illumination optical systems IL are provided, the light guide member 32 divides the illumination light flux EL1 from the light source 31 into a plurality of pieces and guides the plurality of illumination light fluxes EL1 to the plurality of illumination optical systems IL. The light guide member 32 of the present embodiment causes the illumination light beam EL1 emitted from the light source 31 to enter the polarization beam splitter PBS as light in a predetermined polarization state. The polarization beam splitter PBS is provided between the mask M and the projection optical system PL for the orthogonal illumination of the mask M, and reflects the linearly polarized light beam of the S-polarized light and transmits the linearly polarized light beam of the P-polarized light. Therefore, the light source device 13 emits the illumination light beam EL1 that converts the illumination light beam EL1 incident on the polarization beam splitter PBS into a linearly polarized light (S-polarized light) beam. The light source device 13 emits polarized laser light having the same wavelength and phase to the polarization beam splitter PBS. For example, when the light beam emitted from the light source 31 is polarized, the light source device 13 uses a polarization maintaining fiber as the light guide member 32, and guides the light while maintaining the polarization state of the laser light output from the light source device 13. Further, for example, it is also possible to guide the light beam output from the light source 31 with an optical fiber and polarize the light output from the optical fiber with a polarizing plate. That is, the light source device 13 may also polarize the randomly polarized light beam with the polarizing plate while the randomly polarized light beam is being guided. The light source device 13 may guide the light beam output from the light source 31 by a relay optical system using a lens or the like.

Here, as shown in fig. 3, the exposure apparatus U3 of the first embodiment is an exposure apparatus assuming a so-called multi-lens system. Fig. 3 shows a plan view of the illumination area IR on the reticle M held by the cylindrical wheel 21 viewed from the-Z side (left view in fig. 3), and a plan view of the projection area PA on the substrate P supported by the substrate support cylinder 25 viewed from the + Z side (right view in fig. 3). Reference symbol Xs in fig. 3 indicates the moving direction (rotating direction) of the cylindrical wheel 21 and the substrate support cylinder 25. The multi-lens exposure apparatus U3 illuminates a plurality of (for example, six in the first embodiment) illumination regions IR1 to IR6 on the mask M with illumination light beams EL1, and projects and exposes a plurality of projection light beams EL2, which are obtained by reflecting the illumination light beams EL1 with the illumination regions IR1 to IR6, onto a plurality of (for example, six in the first embodiment) projection regions PA1 to PA6 on the substrate P.

First, a plurality of illumination regions IR1 to IR6 illuminated by the illumination optical system IL will be described. As shown in fig. 3, the plurality of illumination regions IR1 to IR6 are arranged on the mask M on the upstream side in the rotation direction with the center plane CL therebetween, the first illumination region IR1, the third illumination region IR3, and the fifth illumination region IR5 being disposed, and the second illumination region IR2, the fourth illumination region IR4, and the sixth illumination region IR6 being disposed on the mask M on the downstream side in the rotation direction. Each of the illumination regions IR1 to IR6 is an elongated trapezoidal region having parallel short and long sides extending in the axial direction (Y direction) of the mask M. In this case, the trapezoidal illumination regions IR1 to IR6 are regions whose short sides are located on the center plane CL side and whose long sides are located outside. The first illumination region IR1, the third illumination region IR3, and the fifth illumination region IR5 are arranged at predetermined intervals in the axial direction. The second illumination region IR2, the fourth illumination region IR4, and the sixth illumination region IR6 are arranged at predetermined intervals in the axial direction. In this case, the second illumination region IR2 is disposed between the first illumination region IR1 and the third illumination region IR3 in the axial direction. Similarly, the third illumination region IR3 is disposed between the second illumination region IR2 and the fourth illumination region IR4 in the axial direction. The fourth illumination region IR4 is disposed between the third illumination region IR3 and the fifth illumination region IR5 in the axial direction. The fifth illumination region IR5 is disposed between the fourth illumination region IR4 and the sixth illumination region IR6 in the axial direction. The illumination regions IR1 to IR6 are arranged such that the triangular portions of the diagonal portions of trapezoidal illumination regions adjacent in the Y direction overlap each other when rotated in the circumferential direction (X direction) of the mask M. In the first embodiment, the illumination regions IR1 to IR6 are trapezoidal regions, but may be rectangular regions.

The mask M has a pattern forming region A3 in which a mask pattern is formed and a non-pattern forming region a4 in which no mask pattern is formed. The non-pattern-formed region a4 is a low reflection region (reflection suppressing portion) that hardly reflects the illumination light beam EL1, and is disposed so as to surround the pattern-formed region A3 in a frame shape. The first to sixth illumination regions IR1 to IR6 are arranged so as to cover the full width of the pattern formation region A3 in the Y direction.

The illumination optical system IL is provided in plural (for example, six in the first embodiment) so as to correspond to the plural illumination regions IR1 to IR 6. The illumination light beams EL1 from the light source device 13 are incident on the plurality of illumination optical systems (divided illumination optical systems) IL1 to IL6, respectively. The illumination optical systems IL1 to IL6 guide the illumination light beams EL1 incident from the light source device 13 to the illumination areas IR1 to IR6, respectively. That is, the first illumination optical system IL1 directs the illumination light beam EL1 to the first illumination region IR1, and similarly, the second to sixth illumination optical systems IL2 to IL6 direct the illumination light beam EL1 to the second to sixth illumination regions IR2 to IR 6. The illumination optical systems IL1 to IL6 are arranged such that the center plane CL is separated from each other, and the first illumination optical system IL1, the third illumination optical system IL3, and the fifth illumination optical system IL5 are arranged on the side (left side in fig. 2) where the first, third, and fifth illumination regions IR1, IR3, and IR5 are arranged. The first illumination optical system IL1, the third illumination optical system IL3, and the fifth illumination optical system IL5 are disposed at a predetermined interval in the Y direction. Further, the plurality of illumination optical systems IL1 to IL6 are disposed such that the second illumination optical system IL2, the fourth illumination optical system IL4, and the sixth illumination optical system IL6 are disposed on the side (right side in fig. 2) where the second, fourth, and sixth illumination regions IR2, IR4, and IR6 are disposed with the center plane CL therebetween. The second illumination optical system IL2, the fourth illumination optical system IL4, and the sixth illumination optical system IL6 are disposed at a predetermined interval in the Y direction. In this case, the second illumination optical system IL2 is disposed between the first illumination optical system IL1 and the third illumination optical system IL3 in the axial direction. Similarly, the third illumination optical system IL3, the fourth illumination optical system IL4, and the fifth illumination optical system IL5 are disposed between the second illumination optical system IL2 and the fourth illumination optical system IL4, between the third illumination optical system IL3 and the fifth illumination optical system IL5, and between the fourth illumination optical system IL4 and the sixth illumination optical system IL6, respectively, in the axial direction. The first illumination optical system IL1, the third illumination optical system IL3, and the fifth illumination optical system IL5 are arranged symmetrically with respect to the second illumination optical system IL2, the fourth illumination optical system IL4, and the sixth illumination optical system IL6 in the Y direction.

Next, the illumination optical systems IL1 to IL6 will be described with reference to fig. 4. Since the illumination optical systems IL1 to IL6 have the same configuration, the first illumination optical system IL1 (hereinafter, simply referred to as the illumination optical system IL) will be described as an example.

The illumination optical system IL illuminates the illumination area IR (first illumination area IR1) on the cover M with kohler illumination using the illumination light beam EL1 from the light source 31 of the light source device 13 so that the illumination area IR is illuminated with uniform illumination. The illumination optical system IL is a vertical illumination system using a polarizing beam splitter PBS. The illumination optical system IL has an illumination optical module ILM, a polarization beam splitter PBS, and a 1/4 wavelength plate 41 in this order from the incident side of the illumination light beam EL1 from the light source device 13.

As shown in fig. 4, the illumination optical module ILM includes, in order from the incident side of the illumination light beam EL1, a collimator lens 51, a fly-eye lens 52, a plurality of condenser lenses 53, a cylindrical lens 54, an illumination field stop 55, and a relay lens system 56, and is disposed on the first optical axis BX 1. The collimator lens 51 receives the light emitted from the light guide member 32, and irradiates the entire incident side of the fly eye lens 52 with the light. The center of the exit-side surface of the fly-eye lens 52 is disposed on the first optical axis BX 1. The fly-eye lens 52 generates a surface light source image that divides the illumination light beam EL1 from the collimator lens 51 into a plurality of point light source images. An illumination light beam EL1 is generated from the area light source image. At this time, the surface of the fly-eye lens 52 on the emission side, which generates the point light source image, is disposed so as to be optically conjugate with the pupil plane on which the reflection surface of the first concave mirror 72 is located, by various lenses from the fly-eye lens 52 to the first concave mirror 72 of the projection optical system PL described later via the illumination field stop 55. The optical axis of the condenser lens 53 provided on the exit side of the fly-eye lens 52 is arranged on the first optical axis BX 1. The condenser lens 53 superimposes light from each of a plurality of point light source images formed on the exit side of the fly eye lens 52 on the illumination field diaphragm 55, and irradiates the illumination field diaphragm 55 with a uniform illuminance distribution. The illumination field diaphragm 55 has a trapezoidal or rectangular opening similar to the illumination region IR shown in fig. 3, and the center of the opening is disposed on the first optical axis BX 1. The aperture of the illumination field diaphragm 55 is disposed in an optically conjugate relationship with the illumination region IR on the mask M by a relay lens system (imaging system) 56, a polarizing beam splitter PBS, and an 1/4 wavelength plate 41 provided in the optical path from the illumination field diaphragm 55 to the mask M. The relay lens system 56 is configured by a plurality of lenses 56a, 56b, 56c, and 56d arranged along the first optical axis BX1, and irradiates the illumination light beam EL1 transmitted through the opening of the illumination field diaphragm 55 to the illumination region IR on the mask M via the polarization beam splitter PBS. A cylindrical lens 54 is provided on the light exit side of the condenser lens 53 and at a position adjacent to the illumination field stop 55. The cylindrical lens 54 is a plano-convex cylindrical lens having a flat incident side and a convex cylindrical lens surface on an exit side. The optical axis of the cylindrical lens 54 is disposed on the first optical axis BX 1. The cylindrical lens 54 converges each principal ray of the illumination light beam EL1 irradiated to the illumination region IR on the mask M in the XZ plane, and is parallel to the Y direction.

The polarizing beam splitter PBS is arranged between the illumination optics module ILM and the central plane CL. The polarization beam splitter PBS reflects the linearly polarized light beam of the S-polarized light with the wavefront splitting surface and transmits the linearly polarized light beam of the P-polarized light. Here, when the illumination light beam EL1 incident on the polarization beam splitter PBS is linearly polarized light of S-polarized light, the illumination light beam EL1 is reflected by the wavefront splitting surface of the polarization beam splitter PBS, becomes circularly polarized light through the 1/4 wavelength plate 41, and illuminates the illumination region IR on the mask M. The projection light beam EL2 reflected by the illumination region IR on the mask M is converted from circularly polarized light to linearly P-polarized light by passing through the 1/4 wavelength plate 41 again, passes through the wavefront splitting surface of the polarization beam splitter PBS, and is directed to the projection optical system PL. The polarizing beam splitter PBS preferably reflects a large part of the illumination light beam EL1 incident on the wavefront dividing plane and transmits a large part of the projection light beam EL 2. The polarization splitting characteristic of the polarization beam splitter PBS on the wavefront splitting plane is expressed as an extinction ratio, but since this extinction ratio also changes depending on the incident angle of the light beam toward the wavefront splitting plane, the characteristic of the wavefront splitting plane is designed in consideration of NA (the number of apertures) of the illumination light beam EL1 and the projection light beam EL2 so that the influence on the practical imaging performance does not become a problem.

Fig. 5 is a diagram showing the behavior of the illumination light beam EL1 within the illumination region IR irradiated onto the mask M and the projection light beam EL2 reflected by the illumination region IR in an enlarged manner in the XZ plane (plane perpendicular to the first axis AX 1). As shown in fig. 5, the illumination optical system IL is configured such that the principal rays of the projection light beam EL2 reflected by the illumination region IR of the mask M are telecentric (parallel system), and each principal ray of the illumination light beam EL1 irradiated into the illumination region IR of the mask M is intentionally non-telecentric in the XZ plane (plane perpendicular to the first axis AX1) and telecentric in the YZ plane (plane parallel to the center plane CL). This characteristic of the illumination beam EL1 is imparted by the cylindrical lens 54 shown in fig. 4.

Specifically, after an intersection point Q2(1/2 radial position) between a line passing from a point Q1 at the circumferential center of the illumination region IR on the mask surface P1 and directed toward the first axis AX1 and a circle 1/2 having a radius Rm of the mask surface P1 is set, the curvature of the convex cylindrical lens surface of the cylindrical lens 54 is set so that the principal rays of the illumination light beam EL1 passing through the illumination region IR are directed toward the intersection point Q2 in the XZ plane. In this way, the principal rays of the projection light beam EL2 reflected in the illumination region IR are parallel to (telecentric with) a straight line passing through the first axis AX1, the point Q1, and the intersection point Q2 in the XZ plane.

Next, a plurality of projection regions PA1 to PA6 that are projected and exposed by the projection optical system PL will be described. As shown in fig. 3, the plurality of projection areas PA1 to PA6 on the substrate P are arranged corresponding to the plurality of illumination areas IR1 to IR6 on the mask M. That is, the plurality of projection regions PA1 to PA6 on the substrate P are arranged with the center plane CL therebetween, the first projection region PA1, the third projection region PA3, and the fifth projection region PA5 are arranged on the substrate P on the upstream side in the transport direction, and the second projection region PA2, the fourth projection region PA4, and the sixth projection region PA6 are arranged on the substrate P on the downstream side in the transport direction. The projection areas PA1 to PA6 are each an elongated trapezoidal (rectangular) area having short sides and long sides extending in the width direction (Y direction) of the substrate P. In this case, the trapezoidal projection regions PA1 to PA6 are regions whose shorter sides are located on the center plane CL side and whose longer sides are located outside. The first projection area PA1, the third projection area PA3, and the fifth projection area PA5 are arranged at predetermined intervals in the width direction. The second projection area PA2, the fourth projection area PA4, and the sixth projection area PA6 are arranged at predetermined intervals in the width direction. At this time, the second projection area PA2 is disposed between the first projection area PA1 and the third projection area PA3 in the axial direction. Similarly, the third projection area PA3 is disposed between the second projection area PA2 and the fourth projection area PA4 in the axial direction. The fourth projection area PA4 is disposed between the third projection area PA3 and the fifth projection area PA5 in the axial direction. The fifth projection area PA5 is disposed between the fourth projection area PA4 and the sixth projection area PA6 in the axial direction. Like the illumination regions IR1 to IR6, the projection regions PA1 to PA6 are arranged such that the triangular portions of the diagonal side portions of the trapezoidal projection regions PA adjacent to each other in the Y direction overlap (overlap) each other in the conveyance direction of the substrate P. In this case, the projection area PA has a shape in which the exposure amount in the overlapping area of the adjacent projection areas PA is substantially the same as the exposure amount in the non-overlapping area. The first to sixth projection regions PA1 to PA6 are arranged so as to cover the full width of the exposure region a7 exposed on the substrate P in the Y direction.

Here, in fig. 2, when viewed in the XZ plane, the circumferential length from the center point of the illumination region IR1 (and IR3, IR5) to the center point of the illumination region IR2 (and IR4, IR6) on the mask M is set to be substantially equal to the circumferential length from the center point of the projection region PA1 (and PA3, PA5) to the center point of the projection region PA2 (and PA4, PA6) on the substrate P along the support surface P2.

A plurality of projection optical systems PL are provided (for example, six projection optical systems PL in the first embodiment) corresponding to the plurality of projection areas PA1 to PA 6. The plurality of projection light beams EL2 reflected from the plurality of illumination regions IR1 to IR6 are incident on the plurality of projection optical systems (split projection optical systems) PL1 to PL6, respectively. The projection optical systems PL1 to PL6 guide the projection light beams EL2 reflected by the mask M to the projection areas PAl to PA6, respectively. That is, the first projection optical system PL1 guides the projection light beam EL2 from the first illumination region IR1 to the first projection region PA1, and similarly, the second to sixth projection optical systems PL2 to PL6 guide the projection light beams EL2 from the second to sixth illumination regions IR2 to IR6 to the second to sixth projection regions PA2 to PA 6. The plurality of projection optical systems PL1 to PL6 are arranged with the center plane CL therebetween, and the first projection optical system PL1, the third projection optical system PL3, and the fifth projection optical system PL5 are arranged on the side (left side in fig. 2) where the first, third, and fifth projection regions PA1, PA3, and PA5 are arranged. The first projection optical system PL1, the third projection optical system PL3, and the 5 th projection optical system PL5 are arranged at a predetermined interval in the Y direction. The plurality of projection optical systems PL1 to PL6 are arranged such that the center plane CL is separated, and the second projection optical system PL2, the fourth projection optical system PL4, and the sixth projection optical system PL6 are arranged on the side (the right side in fig. 2) where the second, fourth, and sixth projection regions PA2, PA4, and PA6 are arranged. The second projection optical system PL2, the fourth projection optical system PL4, and the sixth projection optical system PL6 are arranged at a predetermined interval in the Y direction. At this time, the second projection optical system PL2 is disposed between the first projection optical system PL1 and the third projection optical system PL3 in the axial direction. Similarly, the third projection optical system PL3, the fourth projection optical system PL4, and the fifth projection optical system PL5 are disposed in the axial direction between the second projection optical system PL2 and the fourth projection optical system PL4, between the third projection optical system PL3 and the fifth projection optical system PL5, and between the fourth projection optical system PL4 and the sixth projection optical system PL6, respectively. In addition, the first projection optical system PL1, the third projection optical system PL3, and the fifth projection optical system PL5 are disposed symmetrically with respect to the second projection optical system PL2, the fourth projection optical system PL4, and the sixth projection optical system PL6 when viewed from the Y direction.

Next, the projection optical systems PL1 to PL6 will be described with reference to fig. 4. Since the projection optical systems PL1 to PL6 have the same configuration, the description will be given by taking the first projection optical system PL1 (hereinafter, simply referred to as the projection optical system PL) as an example.

The projection optical system PL projects an image of the mask pattern in the illumination region IR (first illumination region IR1) on the mask M into the projection region PA on the substrate P. The projection optical system PL includes the 1/4 wavelength plate 41, the polarization beam splitter PBS, and the projection optical module PLM in this order from the incident side of the projection light beam EL2 from the mask M.

1/4 the wavelength plate 41 and the polarizing beam splitter PBS serve as the illumination optical system IL. In other words, the illumination optical system IL and the projection optical system PL share the 1/4 wavelength plate 41 and the polarization beam splitter PBS.

The projection light beam EL2 reflected by the illumination region IR becomes telecentric (a state in which the principal rays are parallel to each other), and enters the projection optical system PL. The projection light beam EL2 that is circularly polarized light reflected by the illumination region IR is converted from circularly polarized light to linearly polarized light (P-polarized light) by the 1/4 wavelength plate 41, and then enters the polarization beam splitter PBS. The projection light beam EL2 entering the polarization beam splitter PBS passes through the polarization beam splitter PBS and enters the projection optical module PLM.

The projection optical module PLM is disposed corresponding to the illumination optical module ILM. That is, the projection optical module PLM of the first projection optical system PL1 projects the image of the mask pattern of the first illumination area IR1 illuminated by the illumination optical module ILM of the first illumination optical system IL1 onto the first projection area PA1 on the substrate P. Similarly, the projection optical modules LM of the second to sixth projection optical systems PL2 to PL6 project the images of the mask patterns of the second to sixth illumination areas IR2 to IR6 illuminated by the illumination optical modules ILM of the second to sixth illumination optical systems IL2 to IL6 onto the second to sixth projection areas PA2 to PA6 on the substrate P.

As shown in fig. 4, the projection optical module PLM includes: a first optical system 61 that forms an image of the mask pattern in the illumination area IR on an intermediate image plane P7; a second optical system 62 for re-imaging at least a part of the intermediate image imaged by the first optical system 61 in the projection area PA of the substrate P; and a projection field stop 63 disposed on an intermediate image plane P7 forming an intermediate image. The projection optical module PLM includes a focus correction optical member 64, an image switching optical member 65, a magnification correction optical member 66, a rotation correction mechanism 67, and a polarization adjustment mechanism (polarization adjustment means) 68.

The first optical system 61 and the second optical system 62 are telecentric catadioptric optical systems modified by a Dyson (Dyson) system, for example. The optical axis of the first optical system 61 (hereinafter referred to as a second optical axis BX2) is substantially perpendicular to the center plane CL. The first optical system 61 includes a first deflecting member 70, a first lens group 71, and a first concave mirror 72. The first deflecting member 70 is a triangular prism having a first reflection surface P3 and a second reflection surface P4. The first reflection surface P3 is a surface that reflects the projection light beam EL2 from the polarization beam splitter PBS, and causes the reflected projection light beam EL2 to enter the first concave mirror 72 after passing through the first lens group 71. The second reflection surface P4 is a surface on which the projection light beam EL2 reflected by the first concave mirror 72 enters after passing through the first lens group 71, and reflects the entered projection light beam EL2 toward the projection field stop 63. The first lens group 71 includes various lenses, and the optical axes of the various lenses are arranged on the second optical axis BX 2. The first concave mirror 72 is disposed on the pupil plane of the first optical system 61, and is set in an optically conjugate relationship with the plurality of point light source images generated by the fly-eye lens 52.

The projection light beam EL2 from the polarization beam splitter PBS is reflected by the first reflection surface P3 of the first deflecting unit 70, passes through the upper half field of view region of the first lens group 71, and enters the first concave mirror 72. The projection light beam EL2 incident on the first concave mirror 72 is reflected by the first concave mirror 72, passes through the lower half field of view of the first lens group 71, and then enters the second reflection surface P4 of the first deflecting unit 70. The projection light beam EL2 incident on the second reflection surface P4 is reflected by the second reflection surface P4, passes through the focus correction optical member 64 and the image switching optical member 65, and then enters the projection field diaphragm 63.

The projection field stop 63 has an opening defining the shape of the projection area PA. That is, the shape of the aperture of the projection field stop 63 defines the substantial shape of the projection area PA. Therefore, when the shape of the aperture of the illumination field diaphragm 55 in the illumination optical system IL is a trapezoid similar to the substantial shape of the projection area PA, the projection field diaphragm 63 can be omitted.

The second optical system 62 has the same structure as the first optical system 61, and is disposed symmetrically with respect to the first optical system 61 with an intermediate image plane P7 therebetween. The optical axis of the second optical system 62 (hereinafter referred to as the third optical axis BX3) is substantially orthogonal to the center plane CL and parallel to the second optical axis BX 2. The second optical system 62 includes a second deflecting member 80, a second lens group 81, and a second concave mirror 82. The second deflecting member 80 has a third reflection surface P5 and a fourth reflection surface P6. The third reflection surface P5 is a surface that reflects the projection light beam EL2 from the projection field diaphragm 63, and causes the reflected projection light beam EL2 to enter the second concave mirror 82 after passing through the second lens group 81. The fourth reflection surface P6 is a surface on which the projection light beam EL2 reflected by the second concave mirror 82 enters after passing through the second lens group 81, and reflects the entered projection light beam EL2 toward the projection area PA. The second lens group 81 includes various lenses, and the optical axes of the various lenses are arranged on the third optical axis BX 3. The second concave mirror 82 is disposed on the pupil plane of the second optical system 62, and is set in optically conjugate relation with the plurality of point light source images formed on the first concave mirror 72.

The projection light beam EL2 from the projection field diaphragm 63 is reflected by the third reflection surface P5 of the second deflecting member 80, passes through the upper half field of view region of the second lens group 81, and enters the second concave mirror 82. The projection light beam EL2 incident on the second concave mirror 82 is reflected by the second concave mirror 82, passes through the lower half field of view of the second lens group 81, and then enters the fourth reflection surface P6 of the second deflecting unit 80. The projection light beam EL2 incident on the fourth reflection surface P6 is reflected by the fourth reflection surface P6, passes through the magnification correction optical member 66, and is projected onto the projection area PA. Thereby, the image of the mask pattern in the illumination area IR is projected to the projection area PA at an equal magnification (× 1).

The focus correction optical member 64 is disposed between the first deflecting member 70 and the projection field stop 63. The focus correction optical member 64 adjusts the focus state of the image of the mask pattern projected onto the substrate P. The focus correction optical member 64 is a member obtained by, for example, superimposing two wedge prisms in opposite directions (opposite directions with respect to the X direction in fig. 4) so that the entire prism becomes a transparent parallel flat plate. The thickness of the parallel plate is made variable by sliding the pair of prisms in the direction of the inclined surface without changing the interval between the surfaces facing each other. Thus, the effective optical path length of the first optical system 61 is finely adjusted, and the in-focus state of the image of the mask pattern formed on the intermediate image plane P7 and the projection area PA is finely adjusted.

The image switching optical member 65 is disposed between the first deflecting member 70 and the projection field diaphragm 63. The image switching optical unit 65 adjusts the image of the mask pattern projected onto the substrate P so as to be movable within the image plane. The image switching optical member 65 is composed of a transparent parallel plate glass tiltable in the XZ plane of fig. 4 and a transparent parallel plate glass tiltable in the YZ plane of fig. 4. By adjusting the respective inclination amounts of the two parallel plate glasses, the image of the mask pattern formed on the intermediate image plane P7 and the projection area PA can be slightly shifted (shift) in the X direction or the Y direction.

The magnification correction optical member 66 is disposed between the second deflecting member 80 and the substrate P. The magnification correction optical member 66 is configured such that, for example, three concave lenses, a convex lens, and a concave lens are coaxially arranged at a predetermined interval, the front and rear concave lenses are fixed, and the middle convex lens is moved in the optical axis (principal ray) direction. Thus, the image of the mask pattern formed in the projection area PA is isotropically enlarged or reduced only a small amount while maintaining a telecentric imaging state. The optical axes of the three lens groups constituting the magnification correction optical member 66 are inclined in the XZ plane so as to be parallel to the principal ray of the projection light beam EL 2.

The rotation correcting mechanism 67 is a mechanism for slightly rotating the first deflecting member 70 around an axis parallel to the Z axis by an actuator (not shown), for example. The rotation correcting mechanism 67 can slightly rotate the image of the mask pattern formed on the intermediate image plane P7 in the intermediate image plane P7 by the rotation of the first deflecting member 70.

The polarization adjustment mechanism 68 is a mechanism for adjusting the polarization direction by rotating the 1/4 wavelength plate 41 around an axis orthogonal to the plate surface by an actuator (not shown), for example. The polarization adjustment mechanism 68 can adjust the illuminance of the projection light beam EL2 projected onto the projection area PA by rotating the 1/4 wavelength plate 41.

In the projection optical system PL thus configured, the projection light beam EL2 from the mask M is emitted from the illumination region IR in a telecentric state (a state in which the principal rays are parallel to each other), passes through the 1/4 wavelength plate 41 and the polarization beam splitter PBS, and then enters the first optical system 61. The projection light beam EL2 incident on the first optical system 61 is reflected by the first reflecting surface (plane mirror) P3 of the first deflecting unit 70 of the first optical system 61, passes through the first lens group 71, and is reflected by the first concave mirror 72. The projection light beam EL2 reflected by the first concave mirror 72 passes through the first lens group 71 again, is reflected by the second reflecting surface (flat mirror) P4 of the first deflecting unit 70, passes through the focus correction optical unit 64 and the image switching optical unit 65, and is incident on the projection field diaphragm 63. The projection light beam EL2 having passed through the projection field stop 63 is reflected by the third reflecting surface (plane mirror) P5 of the second deflecting unit 80 of the second optical system 62, passes through the second lens group 81, and is reflected by the second concave mirror 82. The projection light beam EL2 reflected by the second concave mirror 82 passes through the second lens group 81 again, is reflected by the fourth reflecting surface (plane mirror) P6 of the second deflecting unit 80, and is incident on the magnification correction optical unit 66. The projection light beam EL2 emitted from the magnification correction optical member 66 is incident on the projection area PA on the substrate P, and the image of the mask pattern appearing in the illumination area IR is projected onto the projection area PA at an equal magnification (× 1).

In the present embodiment, the second reflecting surface (flat mirror) P4 of the first deflecting unit 70 and the third reflecting surface (flat mirror) P5 of the second deflecting unit 80 are inclined 45 ° with respect to the center plane CL (or the optical axes BX2, BX3), but the first reflecting surface (flat mirror) P3 of the first deflecting unit 70 and the fourth reflecting surface (flat mirror) P6 of the second deflecting unit 80 are set to angles other than 45 ° with respect to the center plane CL (or the optical axes BX2, BX 3). in fig. 5, when an angle formed by a straight line passing through the point Q1, the intersection Q2, and the first axis AX1 and the center plane CL is θ s °, an angle α ° (absolute value) of the first reflecting surface P3 of the first deflecting unit 70 with respect to the center plane CL (or the optical axis BX2) is set to an angle ∈ s +/2, and when an angle of a projection angle of a light beam passing through the center plane CL in the substrate supporting cylinder direction from the second reflecting surface P3 in the second deflecting unit 70 is set to an absolute value of an angle of the center plane CL (or an absolute value of the central point PA 28 + 27 ° + 11) as θ s + 27 in the circumferential direction of the supporting plane CL (or the supporting area PA 25 + β).

< photomask and photomask supporting tube >

Next, the structure of the cylindrical wheel (mask holding cylinder) 21 and the mask M of the mask holding mechanism 11 in the exposure apparatus U3 according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to fig. 6 and 7. Fig. 6 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of the cylindrical wheel 21 and the mask M formed on the outer peripheral surface thereof. Fig. 7 is an expanded view showing a schematic configuration of the mask plane P1 when the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical wheel 21 is expanded to be flat.

In the present embodiment, the mask M is a reflective sheet mask, and is applicable to both the case of being wound around the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical wheel 21 and the case of forming the cylindrical wheel 21 from a metallic cylindrical base material and forming a reflective mask pattern directly on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical base material, but the latter case will be described here for convenience. As shown in fig. 3, the mask M formed on the outer peripheral surface (diameter Φ) of the cylindrical wheel 21, i.e., the mask surface P1 is composed of a pattern forming region A3 and a non-pattern forming region (light-shielding tape region) a 4. The mask M shown in fig. 6 and 7 corresponds to the pattern forming region A3 in the exposure region a7 projected onto the substrate P in fig. 3 via the projection regions PA1 to PA6 of the projection optical systems PL1 to PL6, respectively. The mask M (pattern forming region a3) is formed over substantially the entire circumferential region of the outer circumferential surface of the cylindrical wheel 21, but is smaller than the length La of the outer circumferential surface of the cylindrical wheel 21 in the direction (Y direction) parallel to the first axis AX1, where L is the width (length) of the outer circumferential surface in the direction (Y direction) parallel to the first axis AX 1. In the present embodiment, the masks M are not closely arranged within 360 ° of the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical wheel 21, but are provided with blank portions 92 having a predetermined dimension in the circumferential direction. Therefore, both ends of the margin portion 92 in the circumferential direction correspond to the end and the start of the mask M (pattern forming region a3) in the scanning exposure direction.

In fig. 6, shafts SF coaxial with the first shaft AX1 are provided on both end surfaces of the cylindrical wheel 21. The shaft SF supports the cylindrical wheel 21 via a bearing provided at a predetermined position in the exposure device U3. The bearing is a contact type using a metal ball, a needle roller, or the like, or a non-contact type using a static pressure gas bearing or the like. Further, in each end region of the outer peripheral surface (reticle surface P1) of the cylindrical wheel 21 on the outer side of the region of the reticle M in the Y direction parallel to the first axis AX1, a grating (encoder scale) for measuring the rotational angle position of the cylindrical wheel 21 (reticle M) with high accuracy may be formed in the entire circumferential direction. A scale disk on which a grating for measuring the rotational angle position is engraved may be coaxially fixed to the shaft SF.

Here, fig. 7 shows a state in which the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical wheel 21 of fig. 6 is cut and developed by a cutting line 94 in the margin portion 92. In the following description, a direction perpendicular to the Y direction in a state where the outer circumferential surface is developed is referred to as a θ direction. As shown in FIG. 7, since the diameter is φ, the entire circumferential length of the mask plane P1 is π φ when the circumferential ratio is π. In addition, the mask M (pattern forming region A3) is formed to have a length L in the Y direction parallel to the first axis AX1 of L ≦ La and a length Lb in the θ direction, relative to the full length La of the mask face P1 in the direction parallel to the first axis AX 1. The length obtained by subtracting the length Lb from the entire circumferential length pi Φ of the mask plane P1 is the total dimension of the margin portion 92 in the θ direction. Alignment marks for positioning the mask M are also formed at respective positions dispersed in the Y direction in the margin portion 92.

Here, the mask M shown in fig. 7 is a mask for forming a pattern corresponding to one of display panels used in a liquid crystal display, an organic EL display, and the like. In this case, as the pattern formed on the mask M, there are formed a pattern of electrodes or wirings for TFTs for driving the respective pixels of the display screen of the display panel, a pattern of the respective pixels of the display screen of the display device, a pattern of a color filter and a black matrix of the display device, and the like. As shown in fig. 7, the mask M (pattern forming region a3) is provided with a display screen region DPA in which a pattern corresponding to the display screen of the display panel is formed, and a peripheral circuit region TAB which is arranged around the display screen region DPA and in which a pattern of a circuit or the like for driving the display screen is formed.

The size of the display screen area DPA on the mask M corresponds to the size of the display portion of the display panel to be manufactured (the size in inches of the diagonal length Le), and when the projection magnification of the projection optical system PL shown in fig. 2 and 4 is equal times (x 1), the actual size (the diagonal length Le) of the display screen area DPA on the mask M becomes the size in inches of the actual display screen. In the present embodiment, the display screen area DPA is a rectangle having a long side Ld and a short side Lc, and the length ratio (aspect ratio) of the long side Ld to the short side Lc is, in a typical example, Ld: Lc of 16:9 or Ld: Lc of 2: 1. The aspect ratio 16:9 is an aspect ratio of a screen used for a so-called high-quality image size (wide size). The aspect ratio 2:1 is an aspect ratio of a screen called a display (scope) size, and is an aspect ratio used for an ultra high quality image size of 4K2K in a television screen. For example, in the case of a display panel having an aspect ratio of 16:9 and a screen size of 50 inches (Le 127cm), the long side Ld of the display screen area DPA on the mask M is about 110.7cm, and the short side Lc is about 62.3 cm. When the aspect ratio is 2:1 with the same screen size (50 inches), the long side Ld of the display screen area DPA is about 113.6cm, and the short side Lc is about 56.8 cm.

As shown in fig. 7, when the mask M for one display panel (including the display screen area DPA and the peripheral circuit area TAB) is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical wheel 21, it is preferably arranged so that the direction of the long side Ld of the display screen area DPA becomes the θ direction (the circumferential direction of the cylindrical wheel 21). This is because it is not necessary to make the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 too small, and it is also not necessary to make the length La of the cylindrical wheel 21 in the first axis AX1 too large. Here, an example of the dimension (Lb × L) of the mask M including the width dimension of the peripheral circuit region TAB is given. Although the width dimension of the peripheral circuit region TAB varies depending on the circuit configuration, the sum of the widths in the Y direction of the peripheral circuit regions TAB located on both ends in the Y direction of the display screen region DPA in fig. 7 may be 10% of the length Lc in the Y direction of the display screen region DPA, and the sum of the widths in the θ direction of the peripheral circuit regions TAB located on both ends in the θ direction of the display screen region DPA may be 10% of the length Ld in the θ direction of the display screen region DPA.

In this case, in a 50-inch display panel having an aspect ratio of 16:9, the mask M has a long side Lb of 121.76cm and a short side L of 68.49 cm. Since the dimension of the margin portion 92 in the theta direction is zero or more, the diameter phi of the cylindrical wheel 21 is 38.76cm or more in accordance with the calculation of phi ≧ Lb/pi. Therefore, in order to scan and expose the pattern of the 50-inch display panel having the aspect ratio of 16:9 onto the substrate P, the cylindrical wheel 21 having the diameter Φ of 38.76mm or more and the length La of the mask plane P1 in the direction parallel to the first axis AX1 of the short side L (68.49cm) or more is required. In this case, the ratio L/φ of the diameter φ to the short side L of the mask M is about 1.77. If the total width in the θ direction of the peripheral circuit region TAB is 20% of the length Ld in the θ direction of the display screen region DPA, the long side Lb of the mask M is 132.83cm, the short side L is 68.49cm, the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 is 42.28cm or more, and the ratio L/Φ of the diameter Φ to the short side L of the mask M is about 1.62.

Under the same conditions, in the case of a 50-inch display panel having an aspect ratio of 2:1, the mask M had a long side Lb of 124.96cm and a short side L of 62.48 cm. Thus, the diameter φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 is 39.78cm or more in accordance with the calculation of φ ≧ Lb/π. Therefore, in order to scan and expose the pattern of the 50-inch display panel having the aspect ratio of 2:1 onto the substrate P, the cylindrical wheel 21 having the diameter Φ of 39.78cm or more and the length La of the mask plane P1 in the direction parallel to the first axis AX1 of the short side L (62.48cm) or more is required. In this case, the ratio L/φ of the diameter φ to the short side L of the mask M is about 1.57. If the total width in the θ direction of the peripheral circuit region TAB is 20% of the length Ld in the θ direction of the display screen region DPA, the long side Lb of the mask M is 136.31cm, the short side L is 62.48cm, the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 is 43.39cm or more, and the ratio L/Φ of the diameter Φ to the short side L of the mask M is about 1.44.

As shown in fig. 7, when the mask M formed with a single display panel pattern is disposed on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical wheel (mask holding cylinder) 21, the relationship between the length L of the mask M in the Y direction orthogonal to the scanning exposure direction and the diameter Φ of the mask surface P1 falls within the range of 1.3 ≦ L/Φ ≦ 3.8. However, when the arrangement of the mask M shown in fig. 7 is rotated by 90 ° in fig. 7, the long side Lb of the mask M is set to the Y direction, and the short side L is set to the θ direction, the above relationship is not obtained. For example, in the case of the conventional 50-inch display panel having an aspect ratio of 16:9, when the width in the θ direction of the peripheral circuit region TAB is 10% of the length Ld of the display screen region DPA, since the long side Lb of the mask M is 121.76cm and the short side L is 68.49cm, the minimum value of the length L of the mask face P1 in the direction parallel to the first axis AX1 is Lb (121.76cm), and the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 is 21.80cm or more in accordance with the calculation of ≧ Φ L/π. Thus, the ratio Lb/φ of the diameter φ to the length Lb of the reticle M in a direction parallel to the first axis AX1 is approximately 5.59. Similarly, in the case of a 50-inch display panel having an aspect ratio of 2:1, since the long side Lb of the mask M is 124.96cm and the short side L is 62.48cm, the minimum value of the length L of the mask surface P1 in the direction parallel to the first axis AX1 is Lb (124.96cm), and the diameter φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 is 19.89cm or more in accordance with the calculation of φ ≧ L/π. Thus, the ratio Lb/φ of the diameter φ to the length Lb of the reticle M in a direction parallel to the first axis AX1 is approximately 6.28.

Thus, even if the mask M has the same dimension (Lb × L), the value of the ratio L/φ (or Lb/φ) varies greatly depending on the direction of the long side and the short side. The case where the ratio L/Φ (or Lb/Φ) is large means that the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 is small and the curvature of the mask surface P1 is steep, and therefore, in order to maintain the fidelity of pattern transfer, the width in the scanning exposure direction Xs of the illumination area IR or the projection area PA shown in fig. 3 must be made narrower. Alternatively, the length of the cylindrical wheel 21 in the direction parallel to the first axis AX1 may be doubled to further increase the number of the plurality of projection optical systems PL (illumination optical systems IL) arranged in the Y direction. On the other hand, the ratio L/Φ (or Lb/Φ) is small, and in one case, the length of the mask M on the cylindrical wheel 21 in the direction parallel to the first axis AX1 is small, and for example, only about half of the six projection regions PA1 to PA6 in fig. 3 are used, and in another case, the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 is too large, and the dimension in the θ direction of the margin 92 shown in fig. 6 and 7 becomes large and more than necessary. For the above reasons, by setting the outer dimension condition of the cylindrical wheel (mask holding cylinder) 21 to a relationship of 1.3. ltoreq. L/φ. ltoreq.3.8, it is possible to efficiently perform the precision exposure work using the mask M formed with the pattern for the display panel and to improve the productivity.

In the example shown in fig. 6 and 7, the mask M having a pattern for one-sided display panel is supported on the outer peripheral surface (mask surface P1) of the cylindrical wheel (mask holding cylinder) 21, but a pattern for multi-sided display panel may be formed on the mask surface P1. Several examples of this are illustrated by fig. 8 to 10.

Fig. 8 is a developed view showing a schematic configuration in which three masks M1 having the same size are arranged in the circumferential longitudinal direction (θ direction) of the cylindrical wheel 21 on the mask face P1. Fig. 9 is a developed view showing a schematic configuration in which four masks M2 having the same size are arranged on the mask surface P1 along the circumferential longitudinal direction (θ direction) of the cylindrical wheel 21. Fig. 10 is a developed view showing a schematic configuration in the case where the mask M2 shown in fig. 9 is rotated by 90 °, two masks M2 are arranged in the Y direction on the mask plane P1, and two sets of the masks are arranged along the circumferential longitudinal direction (θ direction) of the cylindrical wheel 21. Since a plurality of (three or four in this case) display panels of the same size on the substrate P are exposed in one rotation of the cylindrical wheel 21, the example shown in fig. 8 to 10 is referred to as a mask M in which a plurality of surfaces are arranged. As shown in fig. 8, the entire area of the mask surface P1 to be scan-exposed on the substrate P by the projection optical system PL is used as a mask M in accordance with fig. 7, and among the masks M, masks M1 (M2 in fig. 9 and 10) to be a display panel are arranged at a predetermined interval Sx in the scanning exposure direction (θ direction). Each mask M1 (M2 in fig. 9 and 10) includes a display screen area DPA having a diagonal length Le and a peripheral circuit area TAB surrounding the display screen area DPA, as in fig. 7.

First, details will be described below starting from the example shown in fig. 8. In fig. 8, the largest rectangle is a mask plane P1 which is the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical wheel 21. When the cutting line 94 is the origin of the θ direction, the mask surface P1 has a length pi Φ in the θ direction and a length La in the Y direction parallel to the first axis AX1 in the range of the rotation angle from 0 ° to 360 °. The region indicated by the dotted line inside the mask plane P1 is the mask M corresponding to the entire region (exposure region a7 in fig. 3) to be exposed onto the substrate P. The three masks M1 arranged in the θ direction in the mask M are arranged such that the long side direction of the display screen area DPA is the Y direction and the short side direction is the θ direction. In addition, within the space Sx adjacent in the θ direction of each reticle M1, alignment marks (reticle marks) 96 for specifying the position of the reticle M (or M1) on the cylindrical wheel 21 are discretely provided at three positions in the Y direction. These mask marks 96 are detected by a mask alignment optical system (not shown) disposed at a predetermined position in the circumferential direction of the cylindrical wheel 21 so as to face the outer circumferential surface (mask surface P1). The exposure device U3 measures the positional deviation in the rotational direction (θ direction) and the positional deviation in the Y direction of the entire cylindrical wheel 21 or each mask M1, based on the position of each mask mark 96 detected by the mask alignment optical system.

In general, since a plurality of layers are stacked when forming a device of a display panel on a substrate P, an exposure apparatus transfers an alignment mark (substrate mark) for specifying a position on the substrate P at which a pattern of a mask M (or M1) is exposed, together with the mask M (or M1), onto the substrate P. In fig. 8, such substrate marks 96a are formed at three positions separated in the θ direction at both ends of each mask M1 in the Y direction. The width of the region on the mask (or the substrate P) occupied by the substrate mark 96a in the Y direction is about several mm. Therefore, the Y-direction length L of the mask M on the mask surface P1 to be exposed on the substrate P is the sum of the Y-direction dimension of each mask M1 and the Y-direction dimension of the region of the substrate mark 96a secured on both sides of each mask M1 in the Y direction.

When the total length obtained by summing the dimension in the θ direction of each mask M1 and the dimension in the Y direction of each space Sx is Px, the θ direction length Lb of the entire mask M on the mask plane P1 becomes Lb equal to 3 Px. As shown in fig. 7, when the mask M corresponding to a single display panel is disposed, the margin 92 having a predetermined length is preferably provided, but as shown in fig. 8, when a plurality of masks M1 are disposed at intervals Sx in the θ direction, the θ -direction length of the margin 92 can be made zero. That is, the length of each mask M1 in the θ direction is naturally determined according to the size of the display panel, and the minimum size required as the space Sx is also predetermined, so the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 may be set to satisfy the relationship of Φ ═ 3 Px/pi. Conversely, if the range of the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 that can be attached to the exposure apparatus U3 is substantially determined, the adjustment can be performed by changing (increasing) the size of the space Sx.

Here, an example of a specific size of the mask M shown in fig. 8 will be described. In fig. 8, it is assumed that the diagonal length Le of the display screen area DPA of the mask M1 is 32 inches (81.28cm), the dimensions in the Y direction and the θ direction of the peripheral circuit area TAB are about 10% of the dimension of the display screen area DPA, and the dimension in the Y direction of the area where the substrate mark 96a is formed is 0.5cm (1cm in total on both sides). In the case of the display panel with the aspect ratio of 16:9, the short side size of the mask M1 was 48.83cm and the long side size was 77.93cm, and in the case of the display panel with the aspect ratio of 2:1, the short side size of the mask M1 was 43.83cm and the long side size was 79.97 cm. When the size of the margin portion 92 is set to zero and three masks M1 and three spaces Sx are arranged in the θ direction so as to satisfy Lb ═ pi ═ 3Px, the space Sx is obtained by Sx ═ 3Lg)/3 if the θ -direction length of the mask M1 is Lg.

Thus, when one of the display panel mask M1 having the aspect ratio of 16:9 and the display panel mask M1 having the aspect ratio of 2:1 is configured to be disposed on the mask plane P1 of the cylindrical wheel 21 having the same diameter, the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 may be about 43 cm. In this case, the interval Sx between the masks M1 may be set to 1.196cm in the display panel having the aspect ratio of 16:9, and the interval Sx between the masks M1 may be set to 5.045cm in the display panel having the aspect ratio of 2: 1.

Since the Y-direction length L of the mask M on the mask face P1 is the sum of the Y-direction dimension of the mask M1 and the Y-direction dimension (1cm) of the formation region of the substrate mark 96a, L is 78.93cm in the mask M for a display panel having an aspect ratio of 16:9, and L is 80.97cm in the mask M for a display panel having an aspect ratio of 2: 1. Therefore, the ratio of the diameter Φ (43cm) of the cylindrical wheel 21 to the Y-direction length L of the mask M is 1.84 in the cylindrical wheel 21 for a display panel having an aspect ratio of 16:9, and 1.88 in the cylindrical wheel 21 for a display panel having an aspect ratio of 2: 1. In any case, the ratio L/φ falls within a range of 1.3 to 3.8.

In addition, when the pattern of the display panel having the aspect ratio of 16:9 is exposed on the substrate P and the pattern of the display panel having the aspect ratio of 2:1 is exposed on the substrate P, if the dimension in the θ direction of the space Sx on the substrate P is controlled to a necessary minimum, it is naturally necessary to change the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21. For example, when the space Sx is 2cm, the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 on which the mask M1 for a display panel having an aspect ratio of 16:9 is formed is ≧ 43.77cm in terms of the relationship of pi Φ to 3(Lg + Sx). On the other hand, the diameter φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 on which the mask M1 for a display panel having an aspect ratio of 2:1 is formed is not less than 40.1 cm. In this case, the ratio L/Φ is 1.80 for the cylindrical wheel 21 for the display panel having the aspect ratio of 16:9, and 2.02 for the cylindrical wheel 21 for the display panel having the aspect ratio of 2:1, and both fall within the range of 1.3 to 3.8.

Further, when the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 (mask M) to be attached to the exposure device U3 is changed in this way, the exposure device U3 is provided with a mechanism for shifting the position of the first axis AX1 of the cylindrical wheel 21 in the Z direction by a difference of about 1/2 of the diameter Φ, in the above example, since the difference of the diameter Φ is 3.67cm, the first axis AX1 (axis SF) of the cylindrical wheel 21 is shifted in the Z direction by about 1.835cm and supported, further, when the shift amount of the first axis AX1 of the cylindrical wheel 21 in the Z direction is large, it is necessary to change the cylindrical lens 54 shown in fig. 4 to a cylindrical lens having a curvature of a convex cylindrical surface as satisfying the illumination condition shown in fig. 5, adjust the angle α ° of the first reflecting surface (plane mirror) P3 of the first deflecting member 70, and slightly tilt the polarizing beam splitter PBS and 1/4 wavelength plate 41 as a whole in the XZ plane.

As described above, as shown in fig. 8, a plurality of substrate marks 96a are provided in the θ direction (scanning exposure direction) along with the pattern for display panel (mask M1) transferred onto the substrate P on the mask M (including three masks M1) formed on the drum wheel 21. Therefore, when the plurality of substrate marks 96a are sequentially transferred to the substrate P together with the pattern for the display panel (mask M1) by the exposure device U3, various problems at the time of exposure can be confirmed. For example, the substrate mark 96a transferred onto the substrate P can be used to specify the position of a defect (e.g., attachment of foreign matter) generated on the substrate P, or to measure various offset errors such as a mask patterning error, a focus error, and an overlay error in overlay exposure. The measured offset error is used for the management of the entire mask, as well as for the position management of each mask M1 on the cylindrical mask 21 and the position management (correction) of each display panel pattern (mask M1) transferred onto the substrate P.

Fig. 9 shows an example in which four masks M2 for a display panel having an aspect ratio of 2:1 are arranged in the θ direction on the mask plane P1 of the cylindrical wheel 21 so that the Y direction is the long side of the display screen area DPA, for example. A space Sx is provided on the side (long side) of each mask M2 in the θ direction, and mask marks 96 and substrate marks 96a are also provided in the same manner as in the above fig. 8. In this case, the total length of the mask plane P1 in the circumferential direction (θ direction) is pi Φ (Lb) 4Px (Lg + Sx). Here, the screen size of the display screen area DPA is set to 24 inches (Le is 60.96cm), the total width of the peripheral circuit area TAB in the θ direction is set to 10% of the length of the display screen area DPA in the θ direction, the total width of the peripheral circuit area TAB in the Y direction is set to 20% of the length of the display screen area DPA in the Y direction, and the total width of the substrate mark 96a formation areas disposed at both ends of the mask M2 in the Y direction is set to 1 cm.

In this case, since the display screen area DPA has the long side 54.52cm and the short side 27.26cm, the total length L in the Y direction of the exposure mask M on the reticle P1, including the formation regions of the mask M2 and the substrate mark 96a, is 66.43 cm. Since the length Lg in the θ direction of the mask M2 on the mask face P1 is 29.99cm, the diameter Φ of the mask M (cylindrical wheel 21) is 39.46cm or more because of pi Φ ≧ 4Px when the space Sx is 1 cm. Therefore, as shown in fig. 9, when the four surfaces of the mask M2 for a display panel having an aspect ratio of 2:1 are provided on the drum wheel 21, the ratio L/Φ is 1.67, and falls within a range of 1.3 to 3.8.

Fig. 10 shows an example in which four masks are arranged on the mask plane P1 in total such that two masks M2 shown in fig. 9 are rotated by 90 ° and the long sides thereof are arranged in the θ direction and two masks M are arranged in the Y direction. Here, a region for forming the substrate mark 96a is provided between the two masks M arranged in the Y direction. Therefore, when the total width of the formation regions of the substrate marks 96a in the Y direction is 2cm, the total length (short side) L in the Y direction of the mask M formed on the mask plane P1 is 61.98cm, the total length (long side) in the θ direction of the mask M is 132.86cm, the diameter Φ of the mask M (cylindrical mask 21) is 42.29cm or more, and the ratio L/Φ is 1.47.

When the four masks M2 are arranged as shown in fig. 9 or 10, the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 and the Y-direction dimension La of the mask plane P1 can be fixed by adjusting the space Sx. In the case of fig. 9 and 10, the length L in the Y direction of the mask M is greater in the case of fig. 9 by 66.43cm, and the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 (mask M) is greater in the case of fig. 10 by 42.29cm or more. Thus, when the cylindrical wheel 21 having the outer peripheral surface (mask surface P1) with the Y-direction dimension La of not less than 66.43cm and the diameter φ of not less than 42.3cm is used, the four sides of the arrangement of the mask M2 can be realized regardless of the arrangement of FIGS. 9 and 10. In this case, the ratio L/φ is 1.57, and also falls within a range of 1.3 to 3.8.

As shown in fig. 8 to 10, it is possible to arrange mask patterns (masks M, M1, M2) for display devices on the mask face P1 in various arrangement rules. On the other hand, by setting the relationship between the length L of the mask surface P1 (outer peripheral surface) of the cylindrical wheel (mask holding cylinder) 21 in the direction (Y direction) orthogonal to the scanning exposure direction (θ direction) and the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 to 1.3 ≦ L/Φ ≦ 3.8, as shown in fig. 8 to 10, even in the case where mask patterns (masks M1 and M2) of a plurality of display panels of various sizes are arranged, the mask patterns can be arranged with the gap (space Sx) reduced.

Further, by making the cylindrical wheel 21 satisfy the relationship of L/φ ≦ 1.3 or less and 3.8, it is possible to suppress an increase in the number of the illumination optical system IL and the projection optical system PL and to suppress an increase in the size of the apparatus. That is, the cylindrical wheel 21 becomes slender, and the number of the illumination optical systems IL and the projection optical systems PL can be suppressed from increasing. Further, the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 becomes larger, so that the Z-direction dimension of the apparatus can be suppressed from becoming larger.

Here, as shown in fig. 7, when the mask M for the display panel having the aspect ratio of 2:1 is formed on the entire outer peripheral surface (mask surface P1) of the cylindrical wheel 21, it is assumed that the dimension in the θ direction of the margin portion 92 in fig. 6 and 7 is zero and the dimension La in the Y direction (first axis AX1 direction) of the mask surface P1 is La ═ L. As described above, the peripheral circuit area TAB disposed around the screen display area DPA may correspond to about 20% of the screen display area DPA. However, the dimensional ratio of the peripheral circuit region TAB depends on which portion around the screen display region DPA is disposed as a practical pattern specification or designThe terminal portion of the circuit is thereby changed. Therefore, although it is not possible to accurately specify the mask M, the mask M is increased in the direction in which the aspect ratio is increased, and the total width of the peripheral circuit regions TAB adjacent to the short side of the screen display region DPA is assumed to be about 20% of the long side Ld of the screen display region DPA. The total width of the peripheral circuit region TAB adjacent to the long side of the screen display region DPA is assumed to be about 0 to 10% of the short side Lc of the screen display region DPA. Under this assumption, in the case where the screen display area DPA is a 50-inch display panel with an aspect ratio of 2:1, the long side Ld of the screen display area DPA is 113.59cm, and the short side Lc is 56.8 cm. Therefore, the length Lb in the θ direction (pi Φ) of the mask M in fig. 7 is 136.31cm, the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 (mask M) is 43.39cm, the length L in the Y direction (La) is 56.8 to 62.48cm, and the ratio of the length L to the diameter Φ is

Is 1.30 to 1.44. In this way, when the entire mask for a display panel having a large aspect ratio is formed so as to be arranged on one surface over the entire outer peripheral surface (mask surface P1) of the cylindrical wheel 21, the ratio L/Φ becomes the minimum value of 1.3. In addition, when the aspect ratio of the screen display region DPA is 2:1, if the mask M is 20% larger than the width of the peripheral circuit region TAB only in the longitudinal direction, the aspect ratio (Lb/L) of the mask M on the one side of the arrangement shown in fig. 7 is 2.4, and the ratio L/Φ ═ pi/2.4 is approximately equal to 1.30 because Lb ═ pi #.

In addition, when the mask M in fig. 7 is rotated by 90 ° and arranged substantially over the entire mask surface P1 of the cylindrical wheel 21 like a printer, the ratio L/Φ becomes excessively large as described above. As described above, when the aspect ratio of the screen display region DPA is 2:1, if the mask M disposed on one side is 20% larger than the peripheral circuit region TAB only in the longitudinal direction, and the θ -direction dimension of the margin 92 is zero, L/Lb (pi Φ) becomes 2.4/1, and the ratio L/Φ becomes 7.54. In this case, when the mask M for a 50-inch display panel of the previous example is used, the Y-direction length L is 136.31cm, the θ -direction length Lb (π φ) is 56.8cm, and the diameter φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 (mask M) is 18.1 cm. Thus, the ratio L/φ changes greatly both when the longitudinal direction of the mask M is in the θ direction and in the Y direction.

Diameter of projection optical system PL of exposure device U3 in cylindrical wheel 21

When the diameter Φ is greatly changed, particularly when the diameter Φ is reduced, a point of a distortion (distortion) error due to the projection and a change in the projection image plane due to the arc become large, and thus it is difficult to expose a good projection image onto the substrate P. In this case, as shown in fig. 11, for example, two masks M2 whose longitudinal direction for the display panel having the screen display area DPA with the aspect ratio of 2:1 is the Y direction may be arranged in the θ direction.

In fig. 11, the two masks M2 each include a screen display area DPA having an aspect ratio of 2:1 and peripheral circuit areas TAB arranged on both sides of the screen display area DPA in the Y direction. The sum of the Y-direction widths of the peripheral circuit region TAB is 20% of the long side dimension Ld of the screen display region DPA, and a space Sx is provided on the right adjacent side of the mask M2. If the board mark 96a or the mask mark 96 is not arranged around the mask M2, the Y-direction dimension L of the entire mask M (the mask plane P1) including the two masks M2 and the space Sx is 1.2 · Ld, and the θ -direction dimension pi phi (Lb) is pi phi 2(Lc + Sx). When the aspect ratio Asp of the screen display region DPA is Asp ═ Ld/Lc, the ratio L/Φ is expressed as follows.

L/φ＝0.6·π·Asp·Lc/(Lc+Sx)

Here, when the interval Sx is set to zero, the ratio L/Φ is 0.6 · pi · Asp, and when two masks M2 for a display panel having an aspect ratio of 2:1 are arranged in the direction shown in fig. 11, the ratio L/Φ of the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 (mask face P1) to the length L (La) in the first axis AX1 direction is 3.77 (about 3.8). In this case, if the picture display area DPA (2:1) is 50 inches, the straight phi is

36.16cm, length L (La) 136.31 cm. Similarly, as shown in FIG. 11When the mask M2 in (a) is used for a display panel having an aspect ratio of 16:9, the ratio L/Φ becomes 3.35 due to the relationship of L/Φ being 0.6 · π · Asp when the space Sx is zero. In this case, when the screen display area DPA (16:9) is 50 inches, the diameter φ is 39.64cm, and the length L (La) is 132.83 cm.

As described above, when the masks M are arranged such that the short side direction of the screen display region DPA is oriented in the circumferential direction (θ direction) of the cylindrical wheel 21 and the long side direction is oriented in the direction (Y direction) of the first axis AX1 of the cylindrical wheel 21, the ratio L/Φ can be set to 3.8 or less by arranging two or more identical masks M2 in the θ direction. When n masks M2 shown in fig. 11 are arranged in the θ direction under the same condition, the relational expression of the ratio L/Φ shown above is as follows.

L/φ＝1.2·π·Asp·Lc/n(Lc+Sx)

According to this relational expression, the arrangement of the mask M2 for a display panel to be manufactured on the cylindrical wheel 21, the required spacing Sx, and the like can be set so as to satisfy L/φ < 3.8 > of 1.3 < L/φ < 3.8.

The mask face P1 can arrange the ratio L/Φ to be less than 3.8 by arranging three masks M1 and M2 of the mask pattern for the display panel device as shown in fig. 8 or four masks as shown in fig. 9. In this case, what value the ratio L/Φ will take is obtained from the relational expression when n masks M1 and M2, which have the Y direction as the long side, are arranged in the θ direction. Since the vertical and horizontal sizes of the masks M1 and M2 vary depending on the width of the peripheral circuit area TAB around the display screen area DPA, the magnification factor of the long-side size of the masks M1 and M2 enlarged by the peripheral circuit areas TAB on both sides (or one side) in the long side direction of the display screen area DPA is e1, and the magnification factor of the short-side size of the masks M1 and M2 enlarged by the peripheral circuit areas TAB on both sides (or one side) in the short side direction of the display screen area DPA is e 2.

Therefore, when the mask plane P1 is disposed so that the Y-direction dimension La matches the longitudinal dimension of the masks M1 and M2, the Y-direction length L of the mask region on the mask plane P1 is L ═ La ═ e1 · Ld. Similarly, the θ -direction length pi Φ (Lb) of the mask region on the mask plane P1 is pi Φ — n (e2 · Lc + Sx), and the ratio L/Φ is expressed by the following relational expression.

L/φ＝e1·π·Asp·Lc/n(e2·Lc+Sx)

In this relational expression, in the case of the mask M2 shown in fig. 11, n is 2, e1 is 1.2, and e2 is 1.0.

For example, when the aspect ratio of the display screen region DPA of the mask M2 for the display panel device is 16:9(Asp is 1.778), if the mask M2 is disposed so as to be three-sided in the θ direction (n is 3), the ratio L/Φ is e1 · pi · Asp/n · e2 when the interval Sx is zero, and the ratio L/Φ is 2.23 even if the magnification e1 is 1.2 and the magnification e2 is 1.0.

Further, as shown in fig. 10, if the aspect ratio of the entire four surfaces of the mask M2(24 inches) arranged in two rows and two columns is substantially the same as the aspect ratio of the mask M (50 inches) arranged on one surface of the display screen area DPA with the longitudinal direction thereof oriented in the θ direction, the cylindrical wheel 21 having the same size can be set only by the difference in the size of the terminal portion of the peripheral circuit area TAB or the difference in the space Sx.

As described above, when the aspect ratio of the display screen area DPA of the display panel is close to 2:1, such as 16:9 or 2:1, in order to efficiently arrange the masks M, M1, M2 for the display panel on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical wheel 21, it is preferable that the relationship between the length L and the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel (cylindrical mask) 21 in the direction (Y direction) orthogonal to the scanning exposure direction (θ direction) satisfies 1.3 ≦ L/Φ ≦ 3.8. When the aspect ratio of the single mask M, M1 or M2 is close to 2:1, it is preferable that the aspect ratio (L: Lb) of the entire mask region on the reticle face P1 occupied by the multiple masks is close to 1:1 when the multiple masks are arranged in a multi-face arrangement. The interval Sx (or the margin 92) is preferably fixed.

Further, the relationship between the diameter Φ of the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical wheel 21 (the mask surface P1) and the overall length L (la) of the mask pattern formed on the mask surface P1 in the direction of the first axis AX1 preferably satisfies 1.3 ≦ L/Φ ≦ 3.8, but the above-described effects can be more preferably obtained if 1.3 ≦ L/Φ ≦ 2.6. For example, when two masks M2 are rotated by 90 ° and arranged in the Y direction without a space therebetween as two planes so that the longitudinal direction of the mask M2 shown in fig. 11 is the θ direction, L/Φ is approximately equal to 2.6. In this case, the length pi Φ (Lb) in the θ direction of one mask M2 is pi Φ e1 · Ld, and the total length L of two masks M2 arranged in the Y direction is 2 · e2 · Lc. Therefore, when Asp is Ld/Lc, the ratio L/Φ becomes L/Φ 2 pi · e2/e1 · Asp, and e1 is 1.2, e2 is 1.0, and Asp is 2/1, L/Φ is pi/1.2 is approximately equal to 2.6.

The exposure device U3 is preferably replaceable with the mask M (M1, M2). By replacing the mask, it is possible to project and expose mask patterns for display panels of various sizes or electronic circuit boards onto the substrate P. Even if there are a plurality of surfaces of the masks (M, M1, M2, etc.) formed on the mask surface P1 of the cylindrical wheel 21, it is not necessary to make the gap (space Sx) between the masks excessively large. That is, a decrease in the effective mask region ratio (mask utilization rate) of the mask surface P1 in the entire area can be suppressed.

The masks M (M1, M2) are preferably replaceable so that the diameter Φ of the mask surface P1 of the cylindrical wheel 21 and the length L of the mask region in the direction (Y direction) orthogonal to the scanning exposure direction are both substantially the same. Thus, by merely replacing the mask M (M1, M2), it is not necessary to adjust other portions such as the projection optical system PL and the illumination optical system IL on the exposure apparatus U3 side, or the distance between the substrate P and the mask surface P1, or it is possible to complete with only a very small amount of adjustment, and it is possible to transfer the patterns of various devices with the same image quality even after the mask replacement.

In the above embodiment, there are cases where the device masks (M1, M2) having a constant diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 and having different numbers of surfaces to be arranged or different arrangement directions are arranged on the mask surface P1, and cases where the cylindrical wheel 21 has a different diameter Φ and devices having different numbers of surfaces are arranged on the mask surface P1. In any case, however, a plurality of mask patterns can be arranged on the mask surface P1 with a small gap by setting the shape of the cylindrical mask surface P1 to satisfy the relationship of 1.3. ltoreq. L/φ. ltoreq.3.8. This enables efficient transfer of the pattern of the device (display panel) onto the substrate P. Further, by forming the cylindrical mask of the cylindrical wheel 21 in a shape satisfying the relationship of L/φ ≦ 1.3 or less and 3.8, it is possible to reduce the gaps between the plurality of device patterns, efficiently arrange the patterns of devices of various sizes, and reduce the variation in the diameter φ of the cylindrical mask.

As shown in fig. 8 to 11, the number of mounting surfaces of the masks M1 and M2 can be two surfaces, three surfaces, four surfaces, or more, depending on the size of the display panel (device) to be manufactured. If the number of mounting surfaces of the masks M1 and M2 is increased to three or four, the size of the gap (space Sx) can be further reduced.

Further, the cylindrical wheel 21 can optimize (increase) the width in the scanning exposure direction (θ direction), i.e., the so-called exposure slit width, of the illumination area IR or the projection area PA with respect to the cylinder diameter (diameter φ) by satisfying 1.3 ≦ L/φ ≦ 3.8. Next, the relationship between the diameter Φ of the mask surface P1 of the cylindrical wheel 21 and the exposure slit width in the scanning exposure direction will be described with reference to fig. 12.

Fig. 12 is a graph for simulating the relationship between the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 (mask face P1) and the exposure slit width D by changing the Defocus (Defocus) amount. In fig. 12, the vertical axis represents the exposure slit width D [ mm ], which represents the width in the θ direction (X direction) of the projection area PA (fig. 3) formed on the substrate P. The vertical axis represents the diameter φ [ mm ] of the cylindrical wheel 21 (photo-mask face P1). The defocus amount is determined by the number NA of apertures on the image side (substrate P side) of the projection optical system PL of the exposure apparatus U3, the wavelength λ of the illumination light for exposure, and the depth of focus DOF defined by the process constant k (k ≦ 1). Here, the simulation was performed for both cases where the amount of deviation (defocus amount) in the focusing direction between the best focal plane of the projection image and the surface of the substrate P was 25 μm and 50 μm.

Here, in the simulation of fig. 12, the number NA of apertures of the projection optical system PL is set to 0.0875, the wavelength λ of the illumination light is 365nm of the i-line of the mercury lamp, and the process constant k is set to about 0.5, so that the depth of focus DOF is set to k · λ/NA according to DOF²To obtain a widthThe degree is about 50 μm (about-25 μm to +25 μm). Further, as the resolution under this condition, 2.5. mu.mL/S can be obtained. The 25 μm defocus time shown by the broken line in fig. 12 is a state in which focus deviation around 1/2 of the depth of focus DOF occurs within the exposure slit width D; the 50 μm defocus indicated by the solid line indicates a state in which focus variation corresponding to the degree of the depth of focus DOF is generated in the exposure slit width D. That is, the graph at 25 μm defocus shown by the broken line shows the relationship between the diameter Φ and the exposure slit width D when l/2 of the width of the depth of focus DOF (width 25 μm) is allowed as an error due to the curvature of the mask surface P1 of the cylindrical wheel 21; the graph of 50 μm defocus shown by the solid line shows the relationship between the diameter Φ and the exposure slit width D when the difference to about the width of the depth of focus DOF is allowed as an error due to the curvature of the mask surface P1 of the cylindrical wheel 21.

In fig. 12, the exposure slit width D when the defocus amount (Δ Z) allowed when the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 is changed within the range of 100mm to 1000mm is 25 μm and the exposure slit width D when the defocus amount is 50 μm are obtained by the following calculation.

D＝2·[(φ/2)²-(φ/2-ΔZ)²]^0.5

According to the simulation, for example, in the case where the diameter Φ is 500mm, the maximum value of the exposure slit width D when allowable as the defocus amount Δ Z to 25 μm is about 7.lmm, and the maximum value of the exposure slit width D when allowable as the defocus amount Δ Z to 50 μm is about 10.0 mm.

As shown in fig. 12, the larger the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21, the larger the exposure slit width D satisfying the allowable defocus amount. In the case of the mask M2 shown in fig. 11 in which the aspect ratio of the display screen area DPA is 2:1 and the peripheral circuit area TAB is provided only in the longitudinal direction of the display screen area DPA, if only one surface of the mask M2 is formed over the entire mask surface P1 of the cylindrical wheel 21 without providing the blank space 92 (space Sx), the ratio L/Φ varies greatly by setting the longitudinal direction of the mask M2 to the circumferential direction (θ direction) of the cylindrical wheel 21 or the direction (Y direction) of the first axis AX 1. If the longitudinal direction of the mask M2 is the Y direction as shown in fig. 11, the θ direction length Lc (short side) of one surface of the mask M2 is equal to the entire circumferential length pi Φ of the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical wheel 21, and is equal to Φ Lc/pi. At this time, the length L of the mask M2 in the first axis AX1 direction (Y direction) on the cylindrical wheel 21 becomes 1.2 · Ld as in the case of fig. 11. Since the aspect ratio is 2:1 and Ld is 2Lc, the ratio L/Φ in this case is 2.4 · π ≈ 7.5. On the other hand, if the short side direction of the mask M2 is set to the Y direction, the entire circumferential length pi Φ of one surface of the mask M2 in the θ direction is 1.2 · Ld, and the Y direction length L of the mask M2 on the cylindrical wheel 21 becomes Lc. Therefore, the ratio L/Φ in this case becomes L/Φ ═ pi/2.4 ≈ 1.3.

When the Y-direction length L of the mask is set within the range of the total Y-direction dimension of the projection regions PAl to PA6 (fig. 3) of the projection optical system PL of the exposure apparatus U3 and the length L is fixed, the ratio is determined

From 1.3 to 7.5 by a factor of about six, which means that the diameter phi of the cylindrical wheel 21 changes by a factor of about six. The change of the diameter phi of about six times corresponds in fig. 12 to a change of the diameter phi from 150mm to 900mm, for example. In this case, the exposure slit width D when the allowable defocus amount Δ Z is set to 25 μm is changed from about 3.9mm when φ 150mm to about 9.5mm when φ 900 mm. Therefore, when the Y-direction length L of the mask is fixed, the exposure slit width D is reduced to about 40% when changing from a cylindrical mask having a diameter of 900mm to a cylindrical mask having a diameter of 150 mm. The same applies to the allowable defocus amount Δ Z of 50 μm.

Therefore, when the ratio L/Φ is in the range from 1.3 to 7.5, the exposure dose applied to the substrate P is reduced to 40% simply when the exposure is performed with the contrast of the projection image fixed. In order to make the exposure amount given to the substrate P an appropriate value (100%), the substrate P is moved at a speed of about 40% with respect to the moving speed of the substrate P when the exposure is performed based on the projection area PA in which the exposure slit width D is set to 9.5 mm. That is, since the transfer speed of the substrate P itself needs to be reduced to about 40%, the throughput (throughput) is reduced to half or less. In order to avoid lowering the substrate P conveyance speed when performing exposure using the projection area PA in which the exposure slit width D is set to 3.9mm, it is also conceivable to increase the luminance of the projected image in the projection area PA, that is, the illuminance of the illumination beam ELI. In this case, the illuminance of illumination beam EL1 with which mask plane P1 was irradiated was increased by about 2.5 times as high as the illuminance at which exposure slit width D was 9.5 mm.

On the other hand, when the arrangement of the mask M2 shown in FIG. 11 is adopted, the ratio L/φ can be reduced to a range (1.3 to 3.8) of about 3.8 (1.2. π) or less. When the Y-direction length L of the mask is fixed, the change in the diameter Φ of the cylindrical mask (cylindrical wheel 21) is in a range of approximately three times, and for example, it is sufficient to consider that Φ is between 900mm and 300 mm. By the simulation of FIG. 12, the exposure slit width D is about 5.5mm when the allowable defocus amount Δ Z is set to 25 μm at a diameter φ of 300 mm. Therefore, the conveying speed of the substrate P is reduced to about 60% or so with respect to the case where the exposure slit width D is about 9.5 mm. Thus, the aspect ratio of the mask region formed on the mask plane P1 of the cylindrical wheel 21 is adjusted so that the ratio L/φ is about 1.3 to about 3.8

The variation of the exposure slit width D can be suppressed by the restriction.

Similarly, when three masks M2 shown in fig. 11 are arranged without a space Sx in the θ direction as shown in fig. 8, L/Φ becomes 0.4 π · Asp, and the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 may vary, for example, within a range of about 1.8 times of 500mm to 900 mm. The exposure slit width D with a defocus amount of 25 μm was reduced from about 9.5mm at a diameter of 900mm to about 7.1mm, which is equivalent to a reduction in productivity to about 75%. However, an improvement is obtained as compared with the case where the productivity is reduced to half or less in the previous example. Further, in the case where four masks M2 shown in fig. 11 are arranged without a space Sx in the θ direction as shown in fig. 9, L/Φ becomes 0.3 pi · Asp, and the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 may vary, for example, within a range of about 1.3 times of 700mm to 900 mm. The exposure slit width D with a defocus amount of 25 μm was reduced from about 9.5mm at a diameter of 900mm to about 8.4 mm. This corresponds to a reduction in productivity to about 88%, but a significant improvement is obtained as compared with the case where the productivity is reduced to half or less in the previous example, and exposure can be performed substantially without loss. Further, if the exposure slit width D is reduced by about 75% or 88%, the illuminance of the illumination light beam EL1 can be easily increased by increasing the light emission intensity of the light source 31, increasing the number of light sources, or the like, and no reduction in productivity occurs at all. In addition, it is known that the size of the mask region is constant as the mask region approaches a constant value. That is, by adopting one surface on which the mask M is arranged, or a plurality of surfaces on which the mask M1 or the mask M2 is arranged, respectively, in accordance with the screen size (diagonal length Le) of the display screen area DPA, the cylindrical wheel 21 (diameter Φ) in which the mask area size (L × pi Φ) is constant can be realized, and the productivity can be maintained constantly.

However, although the ratio L/Φ is set to a range of about 1.3 to about 3.8, this is because it is assumed as shown in fig. 11: the length dimension of the mask M2 for a display panel having an aspect ratio of 2:1 includes the width of the peripheral circuit region TAB, and is increased by 20% (in the case of 1.2 times) with respect to the length dimension Ld of the display screen region DPA. When the longitudinal dimension of the mask is enlarged by e1 times with respect to the longitudinal dimension Ld of the display screen area DPA, the ratio L/Φ is expressed by the following range with Asp ═ Ld/Lc.

π/(e1·Asp)≤L/φ≤e1·π

By using the cylindrical wheel 21 (cylindrical mask) satisfying the above conditions, the exposure apparatus U3 of the present embodiment can align and transfer a plurality of mask patterns for a display panel (device) onto the substrate P while reducing the gap while suppressing distortion (distortion) of a projected image due to a projection error caused by a cylindrical surface or variation (focus variation) of a projected image surface due to an arc.

As described above, the arrangement examples of the masks M, M1, M2, and the like formed on the cylindrical mask (cylindrical wheel 21) in the present embodiment are summarized as shown in fig. 13 and 14. Fig. 13 shows a case where the mask M is arranged on one side in the θ direction as the longitudinal direction as in the previous fig. 7, and fig. 14 shows a case where the mask M2 is arranged on two sides in the θ direction as in the previous fig. 11. Fig. 13 is a case where the display panel mask M having the diagonal length Le (inch) of the display screen area DPA is disposed so that the long side is oriented in the θ direction, as in fig. 7. In this case, when the aspect ratio Asp is defined as the ratio (Ld/Lc) of the long side dimension Ld and the short side dimension Lc of the display screen area DPA, and the entire mask M including the peripheral circuit area TAB around the display screen area DPA is formed on the outer peripheral surface (the mask surface P1) of the cylindrical wheel 21 without excess, the θ -direction length pi Φ of the mask M is pi Φ (e1 · Ld) is e1 · Asp · Lc, and the Y-direction length L is L (e2 · Lc). As described above, e1 is a magnification factor indicating how much the longitudinal direction of the mask M is enlarged with respect to the longitudinal direction of the display screen area DPA by the total width of the peripheral circuit areas TAB attached to both sides or one side of the display screen area DPA in the longitudinal direction. Similarly, e2 is a magnification factor indicating how much the shorter side direction of the mask M is enlarged with respect to the shorter side direction of the display screen area DPA, based on the total width (Ta in fig. 13) of the peripheral circuit areas TAB attached to both sides or one side of the display screen area DPA in the shorter side direction. As described above, the minimum dimension required for the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical wheel 21 (mask plane P1) is pi Φ × L, and the ratio L/Φ of the length L to the diameter Φ of the mask M in this case is as follows.

L/φ＝π·e2/e1·Asp

Assuming that the aspect ratio (pi Φ: L) of the mask M is further increased, the ratio L/Φ becomes pi/1.2 Asp when the width Ta of the peripheral circuit region TAB adjacent to the long side of the display screen region DPA is set to zero (e2 is 1) and the magnification e1 is set to 1.2 (20% increase). Thus, when the aspect ratio Asp is 2(2/1), the ratio L/φ is π/2.4 ≈ 1.3; when the aspect ratio Asp is 1.778(16/9), the ratio L/φ is π/2.134 ≈ 1.47.

Fig. 14 is a case where two masks M2, each having the longitudinal direction of the display screen area DPA as the Y direction, are arranged on both sides in the θ direction, as in fig. 11, and the definitions of the aspect ratio Asp, and the magnifications e1 and e2 are the same as in fig. 13. One mask M2 including the peripheral circuit region TAB around the display screen region DPA has a size of L × Lg, and the two masks M2 are arranged in parallel with a space Sx in the θ direction. Therefore, when the entire mask including the two masks M2 and the two spaces Sx is formed on the outer peripheral surface (mask surface P1) of the cylindrical wheel 21 without leaving a space, the θ -direction length pi Φ of the entire mask is pi Φ — 2(Lg + Sx), and the Y-direction length L is L — e1 · Ld. Therefore, the ratio L/φ at this time is expressed as follows.

L/φ＝π·e1·Ld/2(Lg+Sx)

Here, assuming that the magnification e1 is 1.2 (increased by 20%), the width Ta of the peripheral circuit region TAB adjacent to the long side of the display screen region DPA is zero (e2 equals 1), and the interval Sx is zero, the ratio L/Φ is 0.6 pi · Asp in the relationship of Lg equals e2 · Lc and Ld equals Asp · Lc. Thus, with an aspect ratio Asp of 2(2/1), the ratio L/φ is about 3.8; the ratio L/φ is about 3.4 for an aspect ratio Asp of 1.778 (16/9).

In this way, if the size (in inches) of the display panel (device) disposed on the cylindrical mask face P1, the aspect ratio Asp of the display screen region DPA, the width of the peripheral circuit region TAB, and the like are determined, a cylindrical mask (cylindrical wheel 21) having a ratio L/Φ suitable for the device specification of the exposure device U3 can be easily manufactured.

Further, specific examples will be described with reference to fig. 15 to 18. First, as shown in fig. 7 or 13, the case where the mask M whose longitudinal direction of the display screen area DPA is the θ direction is disposed on one surface of the mask surface P1 of the cylindrical wheel 21 is used as a comparative reference. In this example, the projection optical system PL of the exposure apparatus U3 projects a mask pattern onto the substrate P at an equal magnification. Therefore, a mask pattern having the actual size of the display panel is formed on the mask plane P1 of the drum wheel 21. The display screen area DPA of the display panel is a 60-inch screen with a high image quality size (aspect ratio 16: 9). In this case, the short side dimension Lc of the display screen area DPA is 74.7cm, the long side dimension Ld is 132.8cm, and the diagonal length Le is 152.4 cm. Regarding the size of the entire mask M including the peripheral circuit region TAB, the magnification e1 for the long side direction of the display screen region DPA is set to 1.2 (increased by 20%), the magnification e2 for the short side direction is set to 1.15 (increased by 15%), the long side direction (θ direction) is set to e1 · Ld ═ 159.4cm, and the short side direction (Y direction) is set to e2 · Lc ═ 85.9 cm. Further, the length in the θ direction of the margin portion 92 shown in fig. 6 or 7 is set to 5.0 cm. Since the mask M is set on the mask surface P1 of the cylindrical wheel 21 under the above conditions, the θ -direction dimension pi Φ of the mask surface P1 becomes 164.4 cm. Therefore, the diameter φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 needs to be 52.33cm or more, and is set to 52.5cm, for example. Further, although the length of the mask M in the Y direction as a whole under the above conditions was set to 85.9cm, the full width of the exposure region in the Y direction in which the projection regions PA1 to PA6 of the projection optical systems PL1 to PL6 of the exposure apparatus U3 are connected in the Y direction was 87cm, being slightly larger than 85.9cm, based on the mask M. Here, according to the simulation result shown in fig. 12, when the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 (cylindrical mask M) is 52.5cm, the exposure slit width D when the allowable defocus amount is 25 μ M is 7.4mm, and the exposure slit width D when the allowable defocus amount is 50 μ M is 10.3 mm. Therefore, when scanning exposure of the substrate P is performed using the mask M (cylindrical wheel 21) as a reference shown in fig. 13, various exposure conditions (the moving speed of the substrate P, the illuminance of the illumination light beam EL1, and the like) are optimized with reference to the exposure slit width D of 7.4mm or less or 10.3mm or less. That is, when the allowable defocus amount Δ Z is set to 25 μm or less, the aperture of the illumination field diaphragm 55 or the aperture of the projection field diaphragm 63 in the projection optical system PL in fig. 4 is adjusted so that the exposure slit width D (the width of the projection area PA in the scanning exposure direction) becomes a predetermined value of 7.4mm or less.

Next, a case will be described in which a 32-inch display panel mask M3 having an aspect ratio of 16:9(Asp 16/9) is disposed on the outer peripheral surface (mask surface P1) of the cylindrical wheel 21 set for the 60-inch display panel mask M shown in fig. 13. The dimensions of the mask surface P1 of the cylindrical wheel 21 are such that the Y-direction length L is 85.9cm and the θ -direction length pi Φ is 164.4cm, but when one 32-inch display panel mask M3 (one surface is disposed) is disposed so that the longitudinal direction of the display screen area DPA is the θ direction, similarly to the reference mask M, a wide margin is generated around the mask M3 on the mask surface P1.

In the case of the 32-inch display panel, the long side dimension Ld of the display screen area DPA is 70.8cm, and the short side dimension Lc is 39.9 cm. When the magnification e1 of the peripheral circuit region TAB adjacent to both sides or one side in the longitudinal direction of the display screen region DPA is set to about 1.2 (increased by 20%), the dimension in the θ direction of the mask M3 is set to about 15cm to 85.8cm, and when a margin 92 of about 5cm is further provided in the θ direction, the total length is 90.8 cm. Therefore, the reticle M3 is formed only about 55% of the entire circumferential length (pi Φ is 164.4cm) on the reticle face P1 of the cylindrical wheel 21 prepared for the reference reticle M. The Y-direction length L of the mask surface P1 of the cylindrical wheel 21 as a reference is 85.9cm, whereas if the magnification e2 in the short-side direction of the display screen area DPA is set to about 1.15 (increased by 15%), the Y-direction length of the mask M3 becomes 45.8 cm. Therefore, the mask M3 is formed to be about 53% of the Y-direction dimension (L: 85.9cm) on the mask surface P1 of the cylindrical wheel 21 as a reference. Thus, when the mask M3 for one 32-inch display panel is disposed on the mask plane P1 of the cylindrical wheel 21 as a reference so that the longitudinal direction of the display screen area DPA is the θ direction, the area occupied by the mask M3 is only about 30% of the entire area of the mask plane P1, which is inefficient.

Therefore, in order to efficiently dispose one mask M3 on the cylindrical wheel 21, if the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 is changed so that the total length of 90.8cm, which is the sum of the θ -direction dimension of the mask M3 and the dimension of the margin portion 92, becomes the entire circumferential length, the diameter Φ may be 28.91cm at the lowest. Therefore, when one cylindrical wheel having a diameter Φ of 29cm is prepared as the cylindrical wheel 21 for the mask M3, the exposure slit width D when the diameter Φ is 29cm is about 5.4mm when the allowable defocus amount Δ Z is 25 μ M, based on the simulation result of fig. 12; and about 7.6mm when the allowable defocus amount az is 50 μm.

This is compared with an exposure slit width D (7.4mm, or 10.3mm) set with respect to the cylindrical wheel 21 as a reference. In the case of a mask plane P1 (a cylindrical wheel 21 having a diameter of 52.5cm), which is a reference, the exposure slit width D is set to 10.3mm (the allowable defocus amount is 50 μm), and the moving speed of the substrate P set so that an appropriate exposure amount can be obtained is set to V1. At this time, when the pattern of the mask M3 for the 32-inch display panel on the drum 21 having the diameter Φ of 29cm was exposed on the substrate P under the same conditions, since the exposure slit width D was 7.6mm (the allowable defocus amount was 50 μ M), the moving speed V2 of the substrate P to obtain an appropriate exposure amount was V2 (7.6/10.3) V1 at the time of illuminance fixation, and the substrate processing speed of the production line was reduced by approximately 25% as a whole. When the allowable defocus amount Δ Z is 25 μm, the productivity is also reduced to the same extent.

Then, a specific example of a cylindrical mask (cylindrical wheel 21) in which both surfaces are arranged in the arrangement shown in fig. 14, in which the mask M3 for a 32-inch display panel having an aspect ratio of 16:9 is used, will be described with reference to fig. 15. In fig. 15, the long side dimension Ld of the display screen area DPA is 70.8cm, and the short side dimension Le is 39.9 cm. Further, since the magnification e1 in the longitudinal direction (Y direction) of the mask M3 due to the peripheral circuit region TAB is set to about 1.2 and the magnification e2 in the short side direction (θ direction) is set to about 1.15, the Y direction length L of the mask M3 is increased by about 15cm to 85.8 cm; the θ -direction length Lg of the mask M3 was increased by about 6cm to 45.9 cm.

Here, when the dimension in the θ direction of the space Sx (margin 92) adjacent to the long side of the mask M3 is 10cm, the length in the θ direction of the entire mask region including two masks M3 and two spaces Sx is 110.8cm due to 2(Lg + Sx). Therefore, the diameter φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 in this case may be about 35.3 cm. The length L of the mat surface P1 in the Y direction on the cylindrical wheel 21 was 85.8cm at the lowest. This length L (85.8cm) falls within a range of just 87cm of the full width in the Y direction of the exposure field (total length in the Y direction of the projection regions PA1 to PA6) set by the cylindrical wheel 21 as a reference. Therefore, the cylindrical mask (the cylindrical wheel 21 having a diameter of 35.3cm and a diameter of 85.8cm) arranged on both sides of the mask M3 shown in fig. 15 can be mounted on the exposure device U3 in the same manner as the reference cylindrical mask (the cylindrical wheel 21 having a diameter of 52.5cm and a diameter of 85.9cm) to efficiently expose the pattern of the mask M3 onto the substrate P.

Fig. 16 is an expanded view showing a schematic configuration of another example in which the 32-inch display panel mask M3 shown in fig. 15 is disposed on both sides. Here, two masks M3 having the same size as that in fig. 15 are arranged without a gap in the Y direction so that the longitudinal direction of the display screen area DPA is the θ direction, and the Y direction size L of the two masks M3 is 91.8cm (2 × 45.9 cm). This length L (91.8cm) does not fall within the range of 87cm of the full width in the Y direction of the exposure field (total length in the Y direction of the projection regions PA1 to PA6) set by the cylindrical wheel 21 as a reference. That is, the same mask M3 as in fig. 15 rotated by 90 ° cannot be arranged on the reference mask surface P1 of the cylindrical wheel 21 on both sides.

Fig. 17 is a development view showing a schematic configuration of another example in which the mask M3 for the 32-inch display panel shown in fig. 15 is arranged on one surface. Here, it is assumed that one mask M3 having the same size as that in fig. 15 is disposed so that the short side direction of the display screen area DPA is the θ direction, and the interval Sx of the margin 92 in the θ direction is 10 cm. The arrangement of the mask M3 is extremely small in the area occupied by the standard mask surface P1 of the cylindrical wheel 21, and is inefficient. Therefore, when the cylindrical wheel 21 having a size suitable for the mask M3 on the one side of the arrangement in fig. 17 is assumed, the entire circumferential length pi Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 becomes 55.9cm by the sum of the θ -direction size Lg (45.9cm) of the mask M3 and the size (10cm) of the margin portion 92 (Sx). The diameter φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 is 17.8cm or more, and thus it can be regarded as 18 cm. In this case, the length L of the mask M3 in the Y direction is 85.8cm as in fig. 15, and therefore the ratio L/Φ is about 4.77.

Thus, the diameter of the cylindrical mask (cylindrical wheel 21) is set to be smaller than the standard diameter

When the diameter (18cm) is small (52.5cm), the mask M3 can be efficiently arranged on the mask plane P1, but the productivity (throughput) is lowered. According to the simulation of fig. 12, when the diameter of the mask surface P1 is set to 18.0cm, the exposure slit width D when the allowable defocus amount Δ Z is set to 25 μm is about 4.3mm, and the exposure slit width D when the allowable defocus amount Δ Z is set to 50 μm is about 6.0 mm. Therefore, the moving speed V2 of the substrate P is lower than the moving speed V1 of the substrate P when a standard cylindrical mask (cylindrical wheel 21) is used, as the exposure slit width D becomes narrower. Will allowWhen the defocus amount Δ Z is 25 μm, V2 is (4.3/7.4) V1, and when the allowable defocus amount Δ Z is 50 μm, V2 is (6.0/10.3) V1, and in any case, productivity is reduced to about 58% as compared with the case of using a standard cylindrical mask.

Next, a specific example in the case where three masks M3 having the same size as that of fig. 15 are arranged in the θ direction such that the longitudinal direction thereof is oriented in the Y direction as shown in fig. 15 will be described with reference to fig. 18. The mask M3 in fig. 18 is arranged on three sides in the same manner as in fig. 8.

Here, when the dimensions in the θ direction of the margin 92(Sx) or the space Sx adjacent to each long side of the three masks M3 are all set to 9cm, the dimension Lg in the short side direction of the mask M3 is 45.9cm, and therefore the length in the θ direction of the entire mask region is 164.7cm due to 3(Lg + Sx). In this case, if the θ -direction length of the entire mask region is made to coincide with the entire circumferential length pi Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21, the diameter Φ of the cylindrical wheel 21 is 52.43cm or more. This value is approximately the same as the diameter of a standard cylindrical mask, i.e., 52.5 cm. The dimension L of the mask region in the Y direction was 85.8cm, and was within the total width 87cm in the Y direction of the exposure regions (projection regions PA1 to PA 6).

As described above, in the case of the mask M3 for the 32-inch display panel having the aspect ratio of 16:9, the mask M3 can be effectively arranged by arranging three surfaces as shown in fig. 18, and only adjusting the dimensions of the margin 92 and the space Sx on the mask surface P1 of the standard cylindrical wheel 21(Φ 52.5 cm). Therefore, when the mask M3 is arranged three times as shown in fig. 18, the standard cylindrical mask size (Φ × L) can be used, and thus the productivity is not lowered. Further, in the case of this FIG. 18, the ratio L/φ is about 1.63, falling within the range of 1.3 ≦ L/φ ≦ 3.8 which is considered to be efficiently producible.

As shown in fig. 15 to 18, when a display panel device of an arbitrary size is manufactured using the size of the mask surface P1 of the cylindrical mask (cylindrical wheel 21) as a reference, which can be mounted on the exposure device U3, the pattern can be efficiently transferred without lowering the production efficiency by adjusting the directivity and the number of surfaces so that the ratio L/Φ when the mask is disposed on one surface or disposed on a plurality of surfaces of the cylindrical wheel 21 is in the range of 1.3 to 3.8.

Fig. 15 to 18 are based on the size of a mask plane P1 used for manufacturing a display panel device having a display screen area DPA on the 60-inch side with an aspect ratio of 16: 9. However, the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the display screen region DPA may be a 65-inch screen with a high image quality size having an aspect ratio of 16: 9. In this case, the diagonal length Le of the display screen area DPA arranged as shown in fig. 13 is 165.1cm, the short side Lc extending in the Y direction is 80.9cm, and the long side Ld extending in the θ direction is 143.9 cm. The size of the entire mask M including the peripheral circuit region TAB is larger than the size of the display screen region DPA, and the magnification e1 is increased by 1.2 (the length direction of the display screen region DPA is increased by 20%) only in the longitudinal direction (θ direction), and the magnification e2 is increased by 1.15 (the length direction of the display screen region DPA is increased by 15%) in the short direction (Y direction). Therefore, in the case of the mask M for a 65-inch display panel having an aspect ratio of 16:9, the mask M has a longitudinal dimension of 172.7cm for e 1. Asp. Lc as shown in FIG. 13, and a short-side dimension of 93.1cm for e 2. Lc as shown in FIG. 13. When the mask M on one side is disposed, the blank portions 92 are provided adjacent to each other in the θ direction, and when the θ direction dimension (Sx) is 5cm, the θ direction dimension of the mask plane P1 becomes about 178cm and the diameter Φ becomes 56.7cm or more. Since the length of the reticle P1 in the Y direction is 93.1cm, six projection optical systems PL having the Y direction dimensions of the projection area PA changed so that the full width of the exposure area in the Y direction (the total of the Y direction widths of the projection areas PA1 to PA6) is, for example, 95.0cm are provided in the exposure apparatus U3 which can be mounted on a reticle based on the 65-inch cylindrical reticle. Alternatively, seven projection optical systems are provided in which one projection optical system PL is added in the Y direction. The ratio L/Φ of the cylindrical mask (cylindrical wheel 21) on the side where the 65-inch display panel having the aspect ratio of 16:9 is arranged is 1.64(≈ 93.1/56.7). Further, since the diameter φ of the cylindrical mask is 56.7cm, the exposure slit width D is about 7.5mm when the allowable defocus amount Δ Z is 25 μm and about 10.6mm when the allowable defocus amount Δ Z is 50 μm, based on the simulation result of FIG. 12.

Then, a specific example in which three masks M4 for a 37-inch display panel are arranged in the arrangement shown in fig. 18 on a cylindrical mask (phi 56.7cm, L93.1 cm) for one surface of a 65-inch display panel having an aspect ratio of 16:9 will be described with reference to fig. 19. In fig. 19, when the long side Ld (Y direction) of the 37-inch display screen area DPA is 81.9cm, the short side Lc (θ direction) is 46.lcm, and both the magnification e1 in the long side direction and the magnification e2 in the short side direction are 1.15 (15% increase), the long side dimension L (e1 · Ld) of the mask M4 is about 94.2cm, and the short side dimension Lg (e2 · Le) is about 53.0 cm.

Here, if the space Sx between the mask M4 and the mask M4 is set to about 6.0cm, the total dimension of the three masks M4 and the three spaces Sx in the θ direction on the mask surface P1, that is, the entire circumferential length pi Φ is about 177cm because pi Φ is 3Lg +3Sx, and the diameter Φ is 56.4cm or more. Further, since the Y-direction length L of the mask M4 was 94.2cm, it fell within the full width (95cm) in the Y-direction of the exposure field. In the case of fig. 19, a seventh projection optical system PL (projection area PA7) is added in the Y direction, and the full width in the Y direction of the exposure area is set to 95 cm. As described above, when the 37-inch mask for a display panel shown in fig. 19 is disposed on three sides, a cylindrical mask having the same shape and size as the cylindrical mask (cylindrical wheel 21) for disposing the 65-inch mask M on one side can be used. In this way, even in the case of the mask M4 shown in fig. 19, the interval Sx between the three masks M4 can be reduced with respect to the entire area of the mask surface P1 of the cylindrical wheel 21 as a reference to perform efficient arrangement, and the cylindrical wheel 21 having the same diameter Φ as that of the cylindrical wheel 21 as a reference can be used, so that the reduction in productivity caused by the reduction in the exposure slit width D can be suppressed.

In the case where the display screen area DPA of the display panel device is set to 37 inches in size and the mask M4 used for the display screen area DPA is disposed on both sides, the same arrangement as that shown in fig. 15 can be used. In this case, the total dimension of the two masks M4 and the two spaces Sx in the θ direction is set to be the entire circumferential length pi Φ of the cylindrical mask, andif the interval Sx is set to about 6cm,

therefore, the diameter φ of the cylindrical mask (cylindrical wheel 21) when the double-sided mask M4 is efficiently arranged in the circumferential direction is 37.6cm or more.

In this case, the ratio L/φ is about 2.5(≈ 94.2/37.6). In the case of the cylindrical wheel 21 having a diameter Φ of 37.6cm, the exposure slit width D was about 6mm when the allowable defocus amount Δ Z was 25 μm and about 8.6mm when the allowable defocus amount Δ Z was 50 μm, according to the simulation of fig. 12. In comparison with the exposure slit width D (7.5mm, 10.6mm) set as a reference for a cylindrical mask having a diameter of 56.7cm, the productivity (moving speed of the substrate P) was about 80% regardless of whether the allowable defocus amount Δ Z was 25 μm or 50 μm. However, if the illuminance of the illumination light beam EL1 can be increased by about 20% as compared with the case of exposure using a cylindrical mask as a reference, substantial reduction in productivity does not occur.

The exposure device U3 of the present embodiment projects the mask pattern of the cylindrical mask (cylindrical wheel 21) onto the substrate P at an equal magnification, but is not limited thereto. The exposure device U3 may enlarge the pattern of the mask M at a predetermined magnification and project the enlarged pattern onto the substrate P, or reduce the pattern at a predetermined magnification and project the reduced pattern onto the substrate P, by adjusting the configuration of the projection optical system PL, the peripheral speed of the cylindrical mask (cylindrical wheel 21), the moving speed of the substrate P, and the like.

As described above, in the case where the cylindrical mask mountable on the exposure apparatus U3 of the present embodiment is arranged in a multi-surface manner such that the longitudinal direction of the rectangular display screen area DPA is set to the Y direction and two or more mask areas (masks M1, M2, M3, and M4) are arranged at intervals Sx in the θ direction as shown in fig. 8, 9, 14, 15, 18, and 19, the cylindrical mask (cylindrical wheel 21) is configured as follows.

A cylindrical mask, in which mask patterns (masks M1 to M4) are formed along a cylindrical surface (P1) having a fixed radius (Rm) with respect to a center line (AX1), the cylindrical mask being attached to an exposure apparatus so as to be rotatable about the center line, wherein n (n.gtoreq.2) rectangular mask regions (masks M1 to M4) for a display panel are formed on the cylindrical surface so as to be arranged at intervals Sx in a circumferential direction (theta direction) of the cylindrical surface, the mask regions including: a display screen area (DPA) having an aspect ratio Asp (Ld/Lc) with a long side dimension Ld and a short side dimension Lc; and a peripheral circuit region (TAB) adjacent to a periphery of the display screen region, wherein when a dimension L in a longitudinal direction (Y direction) of the mask region is e1 times (magnification e1 is equal to or greater than 1) a dimension Ld in a long side direction (θ direction) of the display screen region is e2 times (magnification e2 is equal to or greater than 1) a dimension Ld in a short side direction (θ direction) of the display screen region, a length of the cylindrical surface in the center line direction (Y direction) is equal to or greater than the dimension L ([ e1 ]. Ld), an entire circumferential length of the cylindrical surface having a diameter of Φ is set to n (e2 [. pi. Lc. + Sx), and the diameter Φ, the number n, and the interval Sx are set such that a ratio of the dimension L to the diameter Φ is in a range of 1.3 ≤ L/Φ ≤ 3.8.

[ second embodiment ]

Next, an exposure apparatus U3a according to a second embodiment will be described with reference to fig. 20. Note that, in order to avoid redundant description, only the portions different from the first embodiment will be described, and the same components as those in the first embodiment will be described with the same reference numerals as those in the first embodiment. Fig. 20 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of an exposure apparatus (substrate processing apparatus) according to the second embodiment. The exposure apparatus U3 according to the first embodiment is configured to hold the substrate P passing through the projection area by the cylindrical substrate support cylinder 25, but the exposure apparatus U3a according to the second embodiment holds the substrate P in a planar shape by the substrate support mechanism 12a that is capable of moving one-dimensionally or two-dimensionally in the XY plane. Therefore, the substrate P of the present embodiment may be not only a sheet-like sheet substrate based on a flexible resin (PET, PEN, or the like), but also a sheet-like thin glass substrate.

In the exposure apparatus U3a according to the second embodiment, the substrate support mechanism 12a includes a substrate stage 102 on which a support surface P2 that holds the substrate P in a planar shape is mounted, and a moving device (not shown) that moves the substrate stage 102 in a scanning manner in the X direction within a plane orthogonal to the center plane CL.

Since the support surface P2 of the substrate P in fig. 20 is a plane substantially parallel to the XY plane (a plane orthogonal to the center plane CL), the principal ray of the projection light beam EL2 reflected from the mask M, passed through the projection optical module PLM (projection optical systems PL1 to PL6), and projected onto the substrate P is set to be perpendicular to the XY plane.

In the second embodiment, when the projection magnification of the projection optical module PLM is set to be equal (X1), as in the case of fig. 2, the circumferential distance CCM from the center point of the odd-numbered illumination region IR1 (and IR3, IR5) to the center point of the even-numbered illumination region IR2 (and IR4, IR6) on the mask M and the X-direction (scanning exposure direction) distance CCP from the center point of the odd-numbered projection region PA1 (and PA3, PA5) to the center point of the even-numbered second projection region PA2 (and PA4, PA6) on the substrate P along the supporting surface P2 are set to be substantially equal when viewed in the XZ plane.

In the exposure apparatus U3a of fig. 20, the movement devices (such as a linear motor and an actuator for fine movement for scanning exposure) of the substrate support mechanism 12a are also controlled by the lower-level controller 16, and the substrate stage 102 is driven in precise synchronization with the rotation of the cylindrical wheel 21 holding the cylindrical mask M. Therefore, the X-direction and Y-direction movement positions of the substrate stage 102 are precisely measured by the laser interferometer or the linear encoder for distance measurement, and the rotational position of the cylindrical wheel 21 is also precisely measured by the rotary encoder. The support surface P2 of the substrate stage 102 may be constituted by a suction holder that sucks the substrate P in vacuum or electrostatically during scanning exposure, or may be constituted by a bernoulli-type holder that forms a static pressure gas bearing between the support surface P2 and the substrate P to support the substrate P in a non-contact state or a low-friction state.

In the case of the bernoulli-type holder, since the substrate P can be a flexible long sheet substrate (web) and can be moved in the X direction while applying a tension in the X direction (and the Y direction) to the substrate P, there is no need to move the substrate stage 102 (bernoulli-type holder) in the X, Y direction, and the support surface P2 can have an area covering the range of the projection regions PA1 to PA6, so that the substrate stage 102 can be miniaturized. In the case of the bernoulli-type holder, if the substrate P is a long sheet substrate, the substrate P can be continuously moved in the longitudinal direction while scanning exposure is performed, and therefore, the method is more suitable for the roll-to-roll manufacturing than the case of the suction holder which requires additional time such as suction/release of the substrate P.

When the support surface P2 is a plane substantially parallel to the XY plane and the substrate P is supported in a planar shape as in the exposure apparatus U3a, the mask patterns of display panels of various sizes can be efficiently aligned on the substrate P for exposure and the reduction in productivity can be suppressed by making the shape condition (L/Φ) of the cylindrical wheel 21 for holding the masks M (M1 to M4) in a cylindrical shape satisfy the relationship described in the first embodiment.

[ third embodiment ]

Next, an exposure apparatus U3b according to a third embodiment will be described with reference to fig. 21. Note that, in order to avoid redundant description, only the portions different from the first and second embodiments will be described, and the same components as those in the first and second embodiments will be described with the same reference numerals as those in the first and second embodiments. Fig. 21 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of an exposure apparatus (substrate processing apparatus) according to a third embodiment. The exposure apparatus U3b according to the second embodiment is configured using a reflective mask in which light reflected by the mask becomes the projection light beam EL2, but the exposure apparatus U3b according to the third embodiment is configured using a transmissive mask in which light transmitted through the mask becomes the projection light beam EL 2.

In the exposure apparatus U3b according to the third embodiment, the mask holding mechanism 11a includes: a cylindrical wheel (mask holding cylinder) 21a for holding the mask MA in a cylindrical shape; a guide roller 93 for supporting the mask holding cylinder 21 a; a drive roller 98 for driving the mask holding cylinder 21 a; and a drive section 99.

The mask holding cylinder 21a forms a mask surface for disposing the illumination region IR on the mask MA (P1). In the present embodiment, the mask surface is set to be a cylindrical surface having a radius Rm (diameter Φ is 2Rm) with respect to a center line AX 1' extending in the Y direction. The cylindrical surface is, for example, the outer peripheral surface of a cylinder or the outer peripheral surface of a cylinder. The mask holding cylinder 21a is an annular transparent cylinder having a constant thickness and made of, for example, glass, quartz, or the like, and has a mask surface formed on its outer peripheral surface (cylindrical surface).

The mask MA is, for example, a transparent flat sheet mask having a pattern formed on one surface of a long and extremely thin glass plate (for example, 100 to 500 μm thick) having good flatness by a light shielding layer of chromium or the like, and is used in a state of being bent along the outer peripheral surface of the mask holding cylinder 21a and being wound (bonded) around the outer peripheral surface. The mask MA has a non-pattern-formed region where no pattern is formed, and is attached to the mask holding cylinder 21a in the non-pattern-formed region (corresponding to the peripheral margin portion 92 and the like). Therefore, in this case, the mask MA can be attached to and detached from the mask holding cylinder 21 a. Instead of winding the flat sheet mask around the outer peripheral surface of the mask holding cylinder 21a (annular transparent cylinder) as the mask MA, a mask pattern formed of a light-shielding layer such as chromium may be directly drawn and integrated on the outer peripheral surface of the mask holding cylinder 21a made of the annular transparent cylinder. In this case, the mask holding cylinder 21a also functions as a support member (mask support member) for the mask MA.

The guide roller 93 and the drive roller 98 extend in the Y-axis direction parallel to the center line AX 1' of the mask holding cylinder 21 a. The guide roller 93 and the drive roller 98 are provided so as to be circumscribed around the Y-direction end of the mask holding cylinder 21a, but not to contact the pattern forming region of the mask MA held by the mask holding cylinder 21 a. The drive roller 98 is connected to a drive unit 99. The driving roller 98 transmits torque supplied from the driving section 99 to the mask holding cylinder 21a, thereby rotating the mask holding cylinder 21a about the central axis.

The light source device 13a of the present embodiment includes a light source (not shown) and a plurality of illumination optical systems ILa (ILa1 to ILa6) similar to those of the first embodiment. A part or all of the illumination optical systems ILa1 to ILa6 are disposed inside the mask holding cylinder 21a (annular transparent cylinder), and illuminate the illumination regions IR1 to IR6 on the mask MA held on the outer peripheral surface (mask surface P1) of the mask holding cylinder 21a from the inside.

Each of the illumination optical systems ILa1 to ILa6 includes a fly eye lens, a rod integrator, and the like, and illuminates each of the illumination areas IR1 to IR6 with uniform illumination by an illumination light beam EL 1. The light source may be disposed inside the mask holding cylinder 21a or outside the mask holding cylinder 21 a. The light source may be provided separately from the exposure device U3b and may be guided through a light guide unit such as an optical fiber or a relay lens.

Even when a transmissive cylindrical mask is used as the mask as in the present embodiment, the mask patterns of display panels of various sizes can be efficiently arranged on the substrate P for exposure by satisfying the relationship described in the first embodiment with respect to the shape condition (L/Φ) of the mask support cylinder 21a for holding the mask MA in a cylindrical shape, and thus the reduction in productivity can be suppressed.

The exposure apparatuses U3, U3a, and U3b according to the first, second, and third embodiments described above are all configured to project and expose the mask pattern formed on the cylindrical mask surface P1 (the cylindrical wheel 21, the mask holding cylinder 21a) onto the substrate P via the projection optical module PLM (PL1 to PL 6). However, in the case of the transmissive cylindrical Mask (MA) according to the third embodiment, a proximity (proximity) scanning exposure apparatus may be used in which the substrate P is moved synchronously in one direction while rotating the transmissive cylindrical Mask (MA) so that a fixed gap (several tens μm to several hundreds μm) is maintained between the outer peripheral surface (mask surface P1) of the transmissive cylindrical mask and the surface of the substrate P as an exposure target.

In the exposure apparatuses U3, U3a, and U3b according to the first to third embodiments, a mechanism capable of adjusting the support position (Z position) of the cylindrical mask, a mechanism capable of adjusting the state of the optical devices in the illumination optical system IL and the projection optical system PL, and the like are provided so as to correspond to the case where the diameter Φ of the mountable cylindrical mask (the cylindrical wheel 21, the mask holding cylinder 21a) is variable. In this case, there is a range from the minimum diameter φ 1 to the maximum diameter φ 2 for the diameter φ of the cylindrical mask to which the exposure apparatus can be mounted. Therefore, when the cylindrical mask is manufactured so that one or more surfaces of the masks (M, M1 to M4) are arranged according to the size of the display panel to be manufactured, it is preferable to set the shape and size of the cylindrical mask 21 and the mask holding cylinder 21a so as to satisfy the relationship of 1.3. ltoreq.L/φ. ltoreq.3.8 and the relationship of φ 1. ltoreq. φ. ltoreq.2.

< method for manufacturing device >

Next, a device manufacturing method will be described with reference to fig. 22. Fig. 22 is a flowchart showing a device manufacturing method performed by the device manufacturing system.

In the device manufacturing method shown in fig. 22, first, a function and performance design of a display panel formed from a self-light emitting device such as an organic EL device is performed, and a desired circuit pattern and wiring pattern are designed by CAD or the like (step S201). Next, a cylindrical mask is produced for a desired number of layers from various layer-by-layer patterns designed by CAD or the like (step S202). At this time, the cylindrical photomask is manufactured so that the relationship between the diameter φ and the length L (La) satisfies 1.3. ltoreq. L/φ. ltoreq.3.8 and satisfies the condition of being mountable on an exposure apparatus, and φ 1. ltoreq. φ. ltoreq.2. Further, a supply roll FR1 on which a flexible substrate P (a resin film, a metal foil film, plastic, or the like) as a base material of the display panel is wound is prepared (step S203). The roll substrate P prepared in step S203 may be a substrate whose surface is modified as necessary or whose surface has been previously formed with a primer layer (for example, fine irregularities obtained by an imprint method (imprint)), or a substrate on which a photosensitive functional film or a transparent film (insulating material) has been previously laminated.

Next, a backplane layer including electrodes, wirings, insulating films, TFTs (thin film semiconductors), and the like constituting the display panel device is formed on the substrate P, and a light-emitting layer (display pixel portion) including a self-light-emitting device such as an organic EL is formed so as to be stacked on the backplane (step S204). In step S204, the method includes: an exposure step of mounting a predetermined cylindrical mask on the exposure apparatuses U3, U3a, and U3b described in the above embodiments, and exposing a photosensitive layer (a photoresist layer, a photosensitive silane coupling agent layer, or the like) coated on the surface of the substrate P to form an image (a latent image or the like) of a mask pattern on the surface; a wet process of forming a metal film pattern (wiring, electrode, etc.) by an electroless plating method after developing the substrate P on which the mask pattern is formed by exposure as necessary; or a printing step of drawing a pattern with a conductive ink containing silver nanoparticles.

Next, each display panel device continuously manufactured on the long substrate P in a roll manner is cut into the substrate P, and a protective film (a barrier layer to the environment) or a color filter film or the like is attached to the surface of each display panel device to assemble the device (step S205). Next, an inspection process is performed to determine whether the display panel device is operable normally or whether the desired performance and characteristics are satisfied (step S206). Thereby, a display panel (flexible display) can be manufactured.

Description of the reference numerals

1 device manufacturing system

2 substrate supply device

4 substrate recovery device

5 upper control device

11 light shield holding mechanism

12. 12a substrate supporting mechanism

13 light source device

16 lower-level control device

21 cylindrical wheel

21a photomask holding cylinder

25 substrate supporting cylinder

31 light source

32 light guide member

411/4 wave plate

51 collimating lens

52 fly-eye lens

53 condenser lens

54 cylindrical lens

55 lighting field diaphragm

56 relay lens system

61 first optical system

62 second optical system

63 projection field diaphragm

64 focus correction optical component

Optical component for 65 image switching

Optical component for 66-magnification correction

67 rotation correction mechanism

68 polarization adjusting mechanism

70 first deflection member

71 first lens group

72 first concave mirror

80 second deflection member

81 second lens group

82 second concave mirror

92 surplus white part

P substrate

Roll for FR1 supply

Roll for recovering FR2

U1-Un processing device

U3, U3a, U3b Exposure apparatus (substrate processing apparatus)

M, M1, M2, M3 mask

AX1 first axis

AX2 second shaft

P1 mask surface

P2 bearing surface

P7 intermediate image plane

EL1 illumination beam

EL2 projection beam

Radius of curvature Rm

Radius of curvature of Rp

CL center plane

PBS polarization beam splitter

IR 1-IR 6 illumination area

IL 1-IL 6 illumination optical system

ILM illumination optical module

PA 1-PA 7 projection area

PLM projection optical module

Claims (26)

1. A cylindrical mask in which a mask pattern for a display panel is formed along a cylindrical surface having a constant radius with respect to a center line and a diameter phi, and which is rotatably mounted in an exposure apparatus around the center line,

a rectangular mask region for a display panel is formed on the cylindrical surface, the mask region including a display screen region having a long side dimension Ld and a short side dimension Lc, and a peripheral circuit region provided adjacent to the periphery thereof,

setting the dimension of the mask region in the longitudinal direction as e of the long dimension Ld₁Multiplying and setting the dimension L of the mask region in the short side direction as e of the short side dimension Lc₂Multiple times, wherein e₁≥1，e₂And ≥ 1, a length of the cylindrical surface in a direction of the center line is set to be equal to or greater than the dimension L, a total circumferential length π φ of the cylindrical surface, which is determined by a circumferential ratio π and the diameter φ, is set to be equal to or greater than e1 times the dimension Ld, a ratio L/φ of the dimension L to the diameter φ is set to be in a range of 1.3 or more and L/φ or less and 3.8, and the diameter φ is set to be in a range of a minimum diameter φ 1 and a maximum diameter φ 2 that can be attached to the exposure apparatus.

2. The cylindrical reticle of claim 1,

a cylindrical base material having a cylindrical surface for holding the mask pattern along the diameter phi.

3. The cylindrical reticle of claim 2,

the cylindrical base material is composed of a cylindrical body made of metal,

the mask pattern is configured as a reflection-type mask pattern in which a high reflection portion and a low reflection portion for illumination light from the exposure device are directly formed on the circumferential surface of the cylindrical base material.

4. The cylindrical reticle of claim 2,

the mask pattern is configured as a reflective sheet mask in which a high reflection portion and a low reflection portion are formed on a sheet with respect to illumination light from the exposure apparatus,

the reflective sheet mask is held in a cylindrical shape along the peripheral surface of the cylindrical substrate,

the diameter phi is the diameter of the mask surface of the reflection type sheet mask on which the pattern is formed.

5. The cylindrical reticle of claim 4,

the cylindrical base member holds the reflective sheet mask so that the reflective sheet mask can be attached and detached.

6. The cylindrical reticle of claim 2,

the cylindrical base material is composed of a circular transparent cylinder,

the mask pattern is configured as a transmissive mask pattern formed by directly patterning the peripheral surface of the transparent cylinder with a light shielding layer that shields illumination light from the exposure device.

7. The cylindrical reticle of claim 2,

the cylindrical base material is composed of a circular transparent cylinder,

the mask pattern is a transmission type sheet mask formed of a thin glass plate, and a pattern is formed on the thin glass plate by a light shielding layer for shielding illumination light from the exposure device,

the transmission type sheet mask is held in a cylindrical shape along the peripheral surface of the cylindrical base material,

the diameter phi is the diameter of the mask surface of the transmission type thin sheet mask with patterns.

8. The cylindrical reticle of claim 7,

the cylindrical base member holds the transmission type sheet mask in such a manner that the transmission type sheet mask can be attached and detached.

9. The cylindrical reticle set according to any one of claims 1 to 8,

the relationship between the dimension L and the diameter phi is set to satisfy L/phi is not less than 1.3 and not more than 2.6.

10. The cylindrical reticle set according to any one of claims 1 to 8,

the reticle pattern includes: a pattern corresponding to a structure for a thin film semiconductor for driving each pixel arranged in the display screen region, and a pattern corresponding to a circuit arranged in the peripheral circuit region for driving a display screen.

11. The cylindrical reticle set according to any one of claims 1 to 8,

the display screen region corresponds to a display screen of a liquid crystal display or an organic EL display.

12. The cylindrical reticle set according to any one of claims 1 to 8,

a ratio of the long side dimension Ld to the short side dimension Lc of the display screen region is 16:9 or 2: 1.

13. a cylindrical mask in which a mask pattern is formed along a cylindrical surface having a fixed radius with respect to a center line and which is rotatably mounted around the center line in an exposure apparatus,

a dimension L of a region of the cylindrical surface on which the mask pattern is formed in the direction of the center line is set to be equal to or less than a length of a maximum exposure region in the direction of the center line that can be exposed by the exposure device, and a diameter φ of the cylindrical surface is set to be within a range of a minimum diameter φ 1 and a maximum diameter φ 2 that can be attached to the exposure device,

further, the ratio L/φ of the dimension L to the diameter φ is set to a range of 1.3 or more and L/φ or less and 3.8 or less.

14. The cylindrical reticle of claim 13,

the ratio L/φ of the dimension L to the diameter φ is set to a range of 1.3 or more and 2.6 or less.

15. The cylindrical reticle of claim 13 or 14,

the cylindrical surface is formed with a rectangular mask region for one or more display panels, the mask region including a rectangular display screen region having a long side dimension Ld and a short side dimension Lc, and a peripheral circuit region provided adjacent to the periphery thereof.

16. The cylindrical reticle of claim 15,

when one of the mask regions is formed on the cylindrical surface, the direction of the long side dimension Ld of the display screen region is set to be the circumferential direction of the cylindrical surface, and the direction of the short side dimension Lc is arranged along the direction of the center line.

17. The cylindrical reticle of claim 15,

when a plurality of the mask regions are formed on the cylindrical surface, the plurality of the mask regions are arranged in a circumferential direction with the direction of the long side dimension Ld of the display screen region being the direction of the center line and the direction of the short side dimension Lc being the circumferential direction of the cylindrical surface.

18. An exposure method for scanning and exposing a mask pattern formed with a predetermined aspect ratio on a long substrate by a scanning exposure apparatus, comprising:

rotating a cylindrical mask, which is rotatable around a center line extending in a direction orthogonal to a direction of scanning exposure and in which the mask pattern is formed along a cylindrical surface, at a predetermined rotation speed so that a circumferential direction of the cylindrical surface having a fixed radius with respect to the center line and a diameter of Φ becomes the direction of scanning exposure;

setting the direction of the substrate length as the direction of the scanning exposure, and moving the substrate at a predetermined speed,

when a dimension of the mask pattern formed on the cylindrical surface of the cylindrical mask in the direction of the center line is set to L, a ratio L/φ of the diameter φ to the dimension L is set to a range of 1.3 ≦ L/φ ≦ 3.8.

19. An exposure method for scanning and exposing a pattern formed in a rectangular mask region having a predetermined aspect ratio on a substrate by a scanning exposure apparatus, comprising:

a cylindrical mask which is mounted on the scanning exposure apparatus so that a circumferential direction of a cylindrical surface is a direction of scanning exposure and rotates at a predetermined rotation speed around a predetermined center line, wherein the cylindrical surface is curved with a diameter phi having a fixed radius with respect to the center line and has a length of a dimension L in a direction of the center line, one or more mask regions are formed along the cylindrical surface, and a ratio L/phi of the diameter phi to the dimension L is set in a range of 1.3L/phi 3.8;

moving the substrate in the direction of the scanning exposure at a speed synchronized with a rotation speed of the cylindrical reticle.

20. The exposure method according to claim 19,

on the cylindrical surface of the cylindrical mask, 1 rectangular mask region for a display panel is formed such that a short side thereof is parallel to the center line, the mask region including: a display screen region having a long side dimension Ld and a short side dimension Lc, and a peripheral circuit region provided adjacent to the periphery thereof,

e is the long side dimension Ld when the dimension in the long side direction of the mask region is included in the peripheral circuit region₁E is defined as the short side dimension Lc by including the dimension in the short side direction of the mask region in the peripheral circuit region₂Multiple times, wherein e₁≥1，e₂≥1，

The diameter phi and the dimension L are set to satisfy pi phi ≧ e1 · Ld, and L ≧ e2 · Lc, where pi is the circumferential ratio.

21. The exposure method according to claim 19,

on the cylindrical surface of the cylindrical mask, n rectangular mask regions for display panels are formed in an array with long sides parallel to the center line and with a space Sx in the circumferential direction of the cylindrical surface, wherein n is not less than 2, the mask regions include a display screen region with a long side dimension Ld and a short side dimension Lc, and a peripheral circuit region disposed adjacent to the periphery thereof,

setting the dimension of the mask region in the longitudinal direction as e of the long dimension Ld of the display screen region₁Multiplying and setting the dimension of the short side direction of the mask region as e of the short side dimension Lc of the display screen region₂Multiple times, wherein e₁≥1，e₂And ≧ 1, the entire length La of the cylindrical surface in the direction of the centerline is set to the dimension L or more, and the ratio L/φ satisfies a range of 1.3 to 3.8 and is π φ ═ n (e)₂Lc + Sx) is set as the diameter phi, the number n, and the interval Sx.

22. The exposure method according to claim 20 or 21,

the pattern formed on the photomask area comprises: and a pattern constituting a thin film semiconductor for driving the pixels arranged in the display screen region, and a pattern corresponding to a circuit for driving the display screen, the circuit being arranged in the peripheral circuit region.

23. The exposure method according to claim 22,

the ratio of the display screen area to the long side dimension Ld and the short side dimension Lc is 16:9 or 2: the display screen of the liquid crystal display or the organic EL display of 1 corresponds.

24. The exposure method according to any one of claims 19 to 21,

the pattern formed in the mask region on the cylindrical surface of the cylindrical mask is a reflective mask pattern including a high reflection portion and a low reflection portion for illumination light for exposure.

25. The exposure method according to claim 24,

the scanning exposure apparatus includes:

an illumination optical system for irradiating an illumination region set on the cylindrical surface of the cylindrical mask with illumination light for exposure;

a projection optical system that projects an image of the mask pattern into a projection area set on the substrate, upon incidence of reflected light from the reflective mask pattern appearing in the illumination area;

and a polarization beam splitter disposed between the cylindrical mask and the projection optical system, and configured to reflect the illumination light from the illumination optical system toward the cylindrical mask and transmit the reflected light from the cylindrical mask toward the projection optical system.

26. The exposure method according to claim 25,

the projection optical system projects an image of the reflective mask pattern of the cylindrical mask onto the substrate at an equal magnification.

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