JP6960232B2 - Lithography equipment and article manufacturing method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a lithographic apparatus and a method for manufacturing an article.

In the lithography process, if pattern formation is performed with foreign matter adhering to the original plate, the substrate, or the holding portion that holds them, distortion or defects may occur in the pattern formed on the substrate. Therefore, measures such as cleaning the substrate holding portion on a regular basis or depending on the situation are taken (for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2003-234265

Further promotion of foreign matter countermeasures is an important requirement for achieving highly accurate pattern formation performance. On the other hand, if the cleaning is increased indiscriminately, the throughput (productivity) will decrease.

An object of the present invention is to provide a technique advantageous for suppressing pattern distortion and defects and achieving both throughput.

The lithography device according to one aspect of the present invention is a lithography device that forms a pattern on a substrate, and is a substrate holding portion that holds the substrate and an adjusting unit that adjusts the holding force of the substrate by the substrate holding portion. The measuring unit measures the amount of deformation of the substrate in the out-of-plane direction or the in-plane direction, and the measuring unit measures the substrate while the substrate is held by the substrate holding unit while weakening the holding force by the adjusting unit. It has a determination unit for determining whether or not the contact state between the substrate holding portion and the substrate is an abnormality in which adhesion has occurred between the substrate holding portion and the substrate based on the amount of deformation. It is characterized by that.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a technique advantageous for suppressing pattern distortion and defects and achieving both throughput.

The figure which shows the structure of the imprinting apparatus in embodiment. The flowchart which shows the imprint processing in embodiment. The figure explaining the sticking phenomenon of a substrate and a substrate holding part. The figure explaining the method of measuring the deformation amount in the in-plane direction of a substrate. The figure explaining the cleaning apparatus and the storage part in embodiment. The figure explaining the adhesion determination process in an embodiment. The figure explaining the adhesion determination process in an embodiment. The flowchart which shows the distortion removal process including the adhesion determination process in embodiment. The figure explaining the article manufacturing method in embodiment.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited to the following embodiments, and the following embodiments merely show specific examples of the embodiment of the present invention. In addition, not all combinations of features described in the following embodiments are essential for solving the problems of the present invention.

<First Embodiment>
The present invention can be applied to a lithography apparatus such as an imprinting apparatus, an exposure apparatus, and a charged particle beam drawing apparatus, but in the following embodiments, the imprinting apparatus will be described as an example of the lithography apparatus. First, an outline of the imprinting apparatus according to the embodiment will be described. The imprint device is a device that forms a pattern of a cured product to which the uneven pattern of the mold is transferred by bringing the imprint material supplied on the substrate into contact with the mold and giving energy for curing to the imprint material. be.

As the imprint material, a curable composition (sometimes referred to as an uncured resin) that cures when energy for curing is applied is used. Electromagnetic waves, heat, etc. can be used as the energy for curing. The electromagnetic wave may be, for example, light whose wavelength is selected from the range of 10 nm or more and 1 mm or less, for example, infrared rays, visible rays, ultraviolet rays, and the like. The curable composition can be a composition that is cured by irradiation with light or by heating. Of these, the photocurable composition that is cured by irradiation with light contains at least a polymerizable compound and a photopolymerization initiator, and may further contain a non-polymerizable compound or a solvent, if necessary. The non-polymerizable compound is at least one selected from the group of sensitizers, hydrogen donors, internal release mold release agents, surfactants, antioxidants, polymer components and the like. The imprint material can be arranged on the substrate in the form of droplets or islands or films formed by connecting a plurality of droplets by an imprint material supply device (not shown). The viscosity of the imprint material (viscosity at 25 ° C.) can be, for example, 1 mPa · s or more and 100 mPa · s or less. As the material of the substrate, for example, glass, ceramics, metal, semiconductor, resin and the like can be used. If necessary, a member made of a material different from the substrate may be provided on the surface of the substrate. The substrate is, for example, a silicon substrate, a compound semiconductor substrate, or quartz glass.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of an imprint device 1 according to the present embodiment. This imprint device 1 is used for manufacturing a semiconductor device or the like as an article, and forms a pattern of an imprint material on a substrate 10 which is a substrate to be processed by using a mold 8. Here, the imprinting apparatus 1 adopting the photocuring method will be described as an example. In FIG. 1, the Z-axis in the XYZ coordinate system is taken parallel to the optical axis of the ultraviolet light 9 incident on the imprint material 14 on the substrate 10, and the X-axis and the Y-axis are orthogonal to each other in a plane perpendicular to the Z-axis. Take.

The light irradiation unit 2 irradiates the mold 8 and the substrate 10 with ultraviolet rays 9 during the imprint processing. The light irradiation unit 2 may include a light source (not shown) and an optical element that adjusts the ultraviolet light 9 emitted from the light source to light suitable for imprinting. The ultraviolet light 9 is reflected by the dichroic mirror 36b and guided to the mold 8 and the substrate 10.

The mold 8 has a rectangular outer peripheral shape, and the surface facing the substrate 10 includes a pattern portion 8a on which a pattern to be transferred such as a circuit pattern is formed. The material of the mold 8 is a material (for example, quartz) capable of transmitting ultraviolet rays 9. Further, in order to facilitate deformation by the shape correction unit 38 as described later, the mold 8 has a cavity (recess) having a circular planar shape and a certain depth on the surface irradiated with ultraviolet rays 9. May be formed.

First, the mold holding mechanism 3 has a mold holding portion 11 for holding the mold 8 and a mold driving mechanism 12 for holding the mold holding portion 11 and moving the mold 8. The mold holding portion 11 can hold the mold 8 by attracting the outer peripheral region of the ultraviolet ray 9 irradiation surface of the mold 8 by vacuum suction pressure or electrostatic force. For example, when the mold holding portion 11 holds the mold 8 by the vacuum suction pressure, the mold holding portion 11 is connected to a vacuum pump (not shown) installed outside, and the mold 8 is turned on / off by turning on / off the vacuum pump. Can be switched between attachment and detachment. Further, the mold holding unit 11 and the mold driving mechanism 12 have an opening region 13 in the central portion (inside) so that the ultraviolet rays 9 irradiated from the light irradiation unit 2 are directed toward the substrate 10. In the opening region 13, a light transmitting member 41 (for example, a quartz plate) having a space surrounded by a part of the opening region 13 and the mold 8 as a closed space is installed, and a pressure adjusting device (not shown) including a vacuum pump or the like is installed. Adjusts the spatial pressure in the opening region 13. The pressure adjusting device, for example, bends the pattern portion 8a toward the substrate 10 in a convex shape by setting the pressure in the space higher than the outside when the mold 8 comes into contact with the imprint material 14 on the substrate 10. No, the imprint material 14 can be brought into contact with the imprint material 14 from the central portion of the pattern portion 8a. As a result, it is possible to prevent gas from remaining between the pattern portion 8a and the imprint material 14, and to fill the uneven portion of the pattern portion 8a with the imprint material 14 to every corner.

The mold drive mechanism 12 moves the mold 8 in each axial direction so as to selectively contact or separate the mold 8 from the imprint material 14 on the substrate 10. Examples of the actuator that can be adopted in the mold drive mechanism 12 include a linear motor and an air cylinder. Further, in order to support the highly accurate positioning of the mold 8, it may be composed of a plurality of drive systems such as a coarse movement drive system and a fine movement drive system. Further, there is also a configuration having a position adjustment function not only in the Z-axis direction but also in the X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction, or the θ-axis (rotation around the Z-axis) direction, and a tilt function for correcting the inclination of the mold 8. could be. The contacting and pulling operations in the imprinting apparatus 1 may be realized by moving the mold 8 in the Z-axis direction, or may be realized by moving the substrate stage 4 in the Z-axis direction. , Both may be moved relative to each other.

The substrate 10 is, for example, a single crystal silicon substrate or an SOI (Silicon on Insulator) substrate, and the imprint material 14 is applied to the surface to be treated. The substrate stage 4 holds the substrate 10 and aligns the mold 8 with the substrate 10 when the mold 8 comes into contact with the imprint material 14 on the substrate 10. The substrate stage 4 has a substrate holding portion 16 that holds the substrate 10 and a stage driving mechanism 17 that holds the substrate holding portion 16 and makes it movable in each axial direction. The substrate holding unit 16 holds the substrate 10 by vacuum suction pressure or electrostatic force, and the holding force can be adjusted by the adjusting unit 58 by a command from the control unit 7. Further, the substrate holding portion 16 can not only adsorb the substrate 10 but also partially pressurize the substrate 10 from the suction surface side. On the other hand, examples of the actuator that can be adopted in the stage drive mechanism 17 include a linear motor and a flat pulse motor. The stage drive mechanism 17 may also be composed of a plurality of drive systems such as a coarse movement drive system and a fine movement drive system in each of the X-axis and Y-axis directions. Further, there may be a configuration having a drive system for adjusting the position in the Z-axis direction, a position adjusting function in the θ direction of the substrate 10, a tilt function for correcting the inclination of the substrate 10, and the like.

Further, the substrate stage 4 is provided with a plurality of reference mirrors 18 corresponding to each direction of X, Y, Z, ωx, ωy, and ωz on its side surface. Here, ωx, ωy, and ωz represent the rotation directions around the X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis, respectively. On the other hand, the imprint device 1 includes a plurality of laser interferometers 19 (length measuring instruments) that measure the position of the substrate stage 4 by irradiating each of these reference mirrors 18 with a beam. The laser interferometer 19 measures the position of the substrate stage 4 in real time, and the control unit 7 executes positioning control of the substrate stage 4 (that is, the substrate 10) based on the measured value.

The supply unit 5 supplies the uncured imprint material 14 onto the substrate 10. The imprint material 14 is a composition having a property of being cured by receiving ultraviolet rays 9, and can be appropriately selected depending on various conditions such as a semiconductor device manufacturing process. Further, the amount of the imprint material 14 supplied from the supply unit 5 can also be appropriately determined depending on the desired thickness of the imprint material 14 formed on the substrate 10, the density of the formed pattern, and the like.

The shape correction unit 38 includes an external force application unit (not shown) that applies an external force to the side surface of the mold 8 held by the mold holding unit 11, and can deform the shape of the pattern unit 8a by a command from the control unit 7. can. Further, the imprint device 1 of the present embodiment includes a substrate heating unit 37. The substrate heating unit 37 includes a light source unit (not shown), and the light from the light source unit is reflected by the dichroic mirror 36a, passes through the dichroic mirror 36b, and irradiates the substrate 10. The substrate can be heated by the heat generated by the irradiation energy of the light, thereby deforming the substrate.

Further, the imprint device 1 includes an alignment measurement unit 6 for measuring the shape or size of the shot region 20 which is present on the substrate 10 and is the portion to be processed shown in FIG. 4 during the imprint processing. Be prepared. The alignment light 35 emitted from the alignment measurement unit 6 passes through the dichroic mirrors 36a and 36b and irradiates the alignment mark (not shown) formed on the pattern unit 8a and the shot region 20 of the substrate 10. The alignment light 35 reflected by these alignment marks is received by the alignment measurement unit 6, and the relative position between the pattern unit 8a and the shot region 20 on the substrate 10 is measured.

The control unit 7 can control the operation, adjustment, and the like of each component included in the imprint device 1. The control unit 7 may be composed of, for example, a computer device including a CPU and a memory. The control unit 7 is connected to each component of the imprint device 1 via a line, and can execute control of each component according to a program or the like. The control unit 7 of the present embodiment controls at least the operations of the mold holding mechanism 3, the substrate stage 4, the substrate holding unit 16, the shape correction unit 38, the light irradiation unit 2, and the alignment measurement unit 6. The control unit 7 may be integrally formed with other parts of the imprint device 1 (in a common housing), or may be separate from the other parts of the imprint device 1 (in a separate housing). It may be composed of).

Further, the imprint device 1 extends from the base surface plate 27 on which the substrate stage 4 is placed, the bridge surface plate 28 that supports the mold holding mechanism 3, and the base surface plate 27, and is extended via the vibration isolator 29. A support column 30 for supporting the bridge surface plate 28 is provided. The vibration isolator 29 removes vibration transmitted from the floor surface to the bridge surface plate 28. Further, although not shown, the imprint device 1 includes a mold transfer mechanism for transporting the mold 8 from the outside of the device to the mold holding mechanism 3, a substrate transport mechanism for transporting the substrate 10 from the outside of the device to the substrate stage 4, and the like. Can include.

Next, the imprint process by the imprint device 1 will be described with reference to FIG. First, the control unit 7 controls a substrate transfer mechanism (not shown) to carry the substrate 10 into the imprint device 1 and place the substrate 10 on the substrate holding portion 16 on the substrate stage 4 (S101).

The control unit 7 controls the substrate holding unit 16 to hold the substrate 10. Here, there may be a temperature difference between the substrate 10 and the substrate holding portion 16. When the substrate 10 is held by the substrate holding portion 16 in a state where there is a temperature difference, the substrate 10 may be distorted due to heat conduction between the substrate 10 and the substrate holding portion 16. The strain generated on the substrate 10 causes an increase in the overlay error, and therefore needs to be removed. Therefore, in S102, the control unit 7 performs a distortion removing process. In this strain removing process, the control unit 7 waits for a predetermined time so that the heat conduction between the substrate 10 and the substrate holding unit 16 can converge, and then applies the adsorption pressure (holding force) of the substrate holding unit 16. Release once. As a result, the distortion of the substrate 10 is released. After that, the control unit 7 returns the suction pressure of the substrate holding unit 16 to the pressure for holding the substrate 10 again. By doing so, it is possible to remove the distortion generated in the substrate 10 and prevent an increase in the overlay error.

After that, the control unit 7 controls the stage drive mechanism 17 to convey the substrate stage 4 so that the region forming the pattern on the substrate 10 is located below the supply unit 5, and controls the supply unit 5 to enter. The printing material 14 is supplied to the region (S103). Next, the control unit 7 controls the stage drive mechanism 17 to convey the substrate stage 4 so that the region (shot region) forming the pattern on the substrate 10 is located below the pattern portion 8a (S104).

Next, the control unit 7 controls the mold drive mechanism 12 to bring the pattern portion 8a of the mold 8 into contact with the imprint material 14 on the substrate 10 (S105). By this contact, the imprint material 14 is filled in the uneven portion of the pattern portion 8a.

Next, the control unit 7 controls the alignment measurement unit 6 to perform the alignment measurement. For example, a mark 52 is formed in the pattern portion 8a as shown in FIG. 4, and the alignment measurement unit 6 is relative to the mark 52 and the mark 51 formed in the shot region 20 existing on the substrate 10. Measure the position and shape difference. FIG. 4 shows a case where the mark 51 and the mark 52 are separated from each other in the in-plane direction. However, the form of the mark is not limited to this, and a method may be used in which the mark 51 and the mark 52 made of diffraction gratings having different pitches are overlapped to generate moire fringes, and the relative position is detected from the phase of the moire fringes. Based on the result of the alignment measurement, the control unit 7 decomposes the relative position between the pattern unit 8a and the shot region 20 into a shift component and a rotation component, and aligns the position by the stage drive mechanism 17. Further, the control unit 7 determines the shapes of the shape correction unit 38 and the shot area 20 for deforming the shape of the pattern unit 8a so as to reduce the shape difference (magnification difference, etc.) between the pattern unit 8a and the shot area 20. The substrate heating unit 37 for deformation is controlled (S106). At this time, control may be performed using only one of the shape correction unit 38 and the substrate heating unit 37.

When the shape correction of the pattern portion 8a and the shot region 20 is completed, the control unit 7 irradiates the ultraviolet light 9 from the light irradiation unit 2 and cures the imprint material 14 with the ultraviolet light 9 transmitted through the mold 8 (S107). Then, after the imprint material 14 is cured, the control unit 7 controls the mold drive mechanism 12 to separate the mold 8 from the imprint material 14 (release) (S108). As a result, a pattern (layer) of the three-dimensional imprint material 14 that follows the uneven portion of the pattern portion 8a is formed on the surface of the shot region 20 on the substrate 10. After that, the substrate stage 4 conveys the substrate 10 under the supply unit 5 in order to supply the imprint material 14 to the shot region where the pattern is formed next (S109).

By repeating such a series of imprinting operations while changing the pattern forming region (shot region) by driving the substrate stage 4, it is possible to form a pattern of a plurality of shot region imprinting materials on the substrate 10. .. After the imprint material pattern is formed in the plurality of shot regions on the substrate 10, the control unit 7 controls a substrate transport mechanism (not shown) to carry out the substrate 10 (S110).

In the imprint device 1, as shown in FIG. 3, foreign matter 54 may be mixed between the substrate 10 and the substrate holding portion 16. There are various possible routes for foreign matter to be mixed. For example, when the substrate 10 has undergone a plurality of semiconductor processes, foreign matter 54 such as resin (imprint material or resist) may adhere to the back surface of the substrate 10 in any of the steps. Further, when the substrate 10 is stored in the cassette for transporting the substrate 10, degassing occurs from the film (organic substance) formed on the surface of the substrate 10, and the degassing is stored in the cassette. There is also a possibility that foreign matter 54 adheres to the front surface or the back surface of the substrate 10. Alternatively, since the imprint device 1 supplies the imprint material 14 in the device in S103, the volatile components of the imprint material 14 may fill the device and adhere to the surface of the substrate holding portion 16 as foreign matter 54. There is also.

When the substrate holding portion 16 holds the substrate 10 with such a foreign matter 54 sandwiched between them, the substrate 10 and the substrate holding portion 16 wait for a predetermined time during which the heat conduction between the two can converge in the strain removing process of S102. And may cause an adhesion phenomenon in which foreign matter 54 adheres. When the adhesion phenomenon occurs between the substrate 10 and the substrate holding portion 16, the substrate 10 is restrained in the horizontal plane of the substrate holding portion 16, so that the release of the strain of the substrate 10 can be hindered in S102. If the distortion of the substrate 10 is not sufficiently released, the overlay error increases and the possibility of causing device failure increases.

In the present embodiment, the control unit 7 is in contact with the substrate 10 based on a change in the amount of deformation of the substrate 10 measured while weakening the holding force by the adjusting unit 58 during the strain removing process. Can function as a determination unit for determining whether or not is normal. Adhesion as described above is determined to be an abnormality in the contact state (holding state). With the conventional method, it is not possible to detect foreign matter and its adhesion while the substrate is held by the substrate holding portion. Hereinafter, as an example of a process for determining whether or not the contact state between the substrate holding portion 16 and the substrate 10 is normal, the adhesion determination process for determining the presence or absence of adhesion between the substrate 10 and the substrate holding portion 16 will be described in detail below. explain.

In the present embodiment, the adhesion determination process can be performed, for example, in the distortion removing process of S102. FIG. 8 shows a flowchart of the distortion removing process of S102 including the adhesion determination process. The control unit 7 controls the substrate holding unit 16 to set the holding force (adsorption pressure) of the substrate 10 to a value for holding the substrate 10 (S201). As a result, the substrate 10 is held by the substrate holding portion 16. After that, it waits for a predetermined time so that the temperature difference between the substrate 10 and the substrate holding portion 16 is reduced (S202).

Next, the control unit 7 causes the adjusting unit 58 to reduce the holding force of the substrate by the substrate holding unit 16 by a certain amount (S203), and each time, the direction orthogonal to the direction along the surface of the substrate 10 (in-plane direction). The amount of deformation (out-of-plane direction) is measured (S204). At this time, for example, the alignment measurement unit 6, the high magnification alignment scope 55, or the height sensor 56 can be used as the measurement unit for measuring the amount of deformation. That is, the amount of deformation in the out-of-plane direction can be measured, for example, by calculating based on the amount of focus shift in the alignment measuring unit 6. Alternatively, it may be calculated based on the amount of focus shift of the high-magnification alignment scope 55 for detecting the mark on the substrate 10, or a length measuring device such as a laser interferometer is mounted as the height sensor 56 of the substrate 10. May be measured.

FIG. 6 is a graph showing an example of a change in the amount of deformation of the substrate 10 in the out-of-plane direction when the suction pressure of the substrate holding portion 16 is changed. In FIG. 6, the horizontal axis indicates the suction pressure of the substrate (that is, the holding force for holding the substrate by the substrate holding portion 16), and the lower the suction pressure (that is, the more to the left), the stronger the holding force and the suction. The higher the pressure (to the right), the weaker the holding force.

When the holding force of the substrate by the substrate holding portion 16 is weakened (going to the right on the horizontal axis), the substrate 10 is lifted from the substrate holding portion 16 by a certain holding force as shown in curve A, and the substrate 10 is deformed in the out-of-plane direction. Will occur. However, if adhesion occurs between the substrate 10 and the substrate holding portion 16, the substrate 10 does not float due to the holding force, and the substrate 10 does not float unless the holding force is further weakened as shown in curve B.

Therefore, while weakening the holding force in S203, the control unit 7 monitors whether the holding force reaches a predetermined value F, which is a holding force at the starting point of the normal floating of the substrate or a holding force slightly weaker than that, by the adjusting unit 58. (S205). When the holding force reaches a predetermined value F, the control unit 7 determines whether or not the amount of deformation of the substrate in the out-of-plane direction exceeds the threshold value TH (S206). The threshold value TH is set to a value for determining the lift of the substrate 10 from the substrate holding unit 16 based on the amount of deformation in the out-of-plane direction, and is stored in, for example, a memory in the control unit 7. Here, if the amount of deformation does not exceed the threshold value TH, the control unit 7 determines that the contact state between the substrate holding unit 16 and the substrate 10 is abnormal (adhesion has occurred). In this case, the control unit 7 outputs a warning prompting maintenance of the board holding unit 16 (S210) and stops the process (S211).

On the other hand, if the amount of deformation of the substrate in the out-of-plane direction exceeds the threshold value TH, the control unit 7 further weakens the holding force in order to proceed with the strain removing process (S207). Then, it is confirmed whether the holding force is below the predetermined lower limit value (S208), and when it is below the lower limit value, the holding force is returned to the original value (value of S201) for holding the substrate 10 (S209). ..

As another method, if the holding force of the board when the amount of deformation of the board in the out-of-plane direction exceeds the threshold value TH is weaker than the predetermined value F, the control unit 7 makes contact between the board holding unit 16 and the board 10. It may be determined that the state is abnormal (adhesion has occurred). The substrate 10 held by the substrate holding portion 16 may be warped due to residual stress in a process of undergoing a semiconductor process such as a film forming process or an etching process. Since the amount of deformation of the substrate 10 in the out-of-plane direction changes depending on the warp generated in the substrate 10, the threshold value TH may be set in consideration of the warp of the substrate 10.

When a warning prompting maintenance of the substrate holding portion 16 is issued, there is a high possibility that foreign matter is attached to the surface of the substrate holding portion 16, so that the substrate holding portion 16 is sent to the cleaning step. The substrate holding portion 16 is cleaned by, for example, a cleaning device 71 adjacent to the imprint device 1 as shown in FIG. In this case, the substrate holding portion 16 to be maintained is conveyed to the cleaning device 71 by the transfer robot 61. The cleaning can be appropriately selected from ultrasonic cleaning, degreasing cleaning, mechanical cleaning and the like, depending on the physical characteristics of the foreign matter. By cleaning with the cleaning device 71, foreign matter adhering to the substrate holding portion 16 is removed, and the adhesion phenomenon that occurs between the substrate 10 and the substrate holding portion 16 can be prevented, thereby suppressing an increase in overlay error. Be done. The cleaning device 71 may be provided inside the imprint device 1 or may be provided outside the imprint device 1. Further, the warning prompting the maintenance of the board holding unit 16 may be a voice notification, a display by the display unit, or both.

In the above description, the adhesion determination process has been described as being performed in the distortion removing process of S102, but it may be performed independently of the distortion removing process of S102. Since the strain removing process of S102 includes a step of weakening the holding force of the substrate, it is advantageous to perform the adhesion determination process together with the step of weakening the holding force of the substrate in that the throughput is not lowered. Further, the adhesion determination process may be performed on all the parts of the substrate 10, or may be typically performed only on a specific part. Further, the adhesion determination process may be performed on all the substrates in the lot, or may be performed only on a specific substrate.

<Second Embodiment>
In the first embodiment, the adhesion was determined based on the measurement result of the amount of deformation of the substrate 10 in the out-of-plane direction, but in the present embodiment, the deformation in the direction along the surface of the substrate 10 (in-plane direction). Adhesion is determined based on the measurement result of the amount. FIG. 7 is a graph showing an example of a change in the amount of deformation of the substrate 10 in the in-plane direction when the suction pressure of the substrate holding portion 16 is changed. Similar to FIG. 6, the horizontal axis of FIG. 7 indicates the suction pressure of the substrate (that is, the holding force that the substrate holding portion holds the substrate), and the lower the suction pressure (that is, the more to the left), the stronger the holding force. It becomes stronger, and the higher the suction pressure (to the right), the weaker the holding force.

When the holding force of the substrate by the substrate holding portion 16 is weakened (going to the right on the horizontal axis), as shown in curve C, the frictional force received by the substrate 10 from the substrate holding portion 16 decreases with a certain holding force. Sliding occurs and deformation in the in-plane direction occurs. However, if adhesion occurs between the substrate 10 and the substrate holding portion 16, the holding force does not cause the substrate 10 to slip, and as shown in curve D, the holding force of the substrate 10 must be further weakened. No slippage occurs.

Therefore, the control unit 7 determines whether or not the amount of deformation of the substrate in the in-plane direction exceeds the threshold value TH'at the holding force F'where the normal substrate starts to slip or is slightly weaker than that. judge. The threshold value TH'is set to a value for determining slippage of the substrate 10 with respect to the substrate holding portion 16 based on the amount of deformation in the in-plane direction, and is stored in, for example, a memory in the control unit 7. The amount of deformation in the in-plane direction can be measured by, for example, using the alignment measuring unit 6 to calculate the alignment mark deviation amount 53 between the pattern unit 8a shown in FIG. 4 and the shot region 20 on the substrate. Alternatively, the amount of deformation of the substrate 10 in the in-plane direction may be directly measured using the high-magnification alignment scope 55. Further, the amount of deformation of the substrate 10 in the in-plane direction may be measured by changing the holding force of the substrate of the substrate holding portion 16 in a state where the substrate 10 is heated by the substrate heating unit 37. If the amount of deformation in the in-plane direction does not exceed TH'at this point, the control unit 7 determines that adhesion has occurred and outputs a warning prompting maintenance of the substrate holding unit 16. Here, the threshold value of the amount of deformation may differ depending on the location of the shot region formed on the substrate. Therefore, the threshold value according to the measurement location may be stored in the memory in the control unit 7. As another method, if the holding force of the board when the amount of deformation of the board in the in-plane direction exceeds the threshold value TH'is weaker than a predetermined value, the control unit 7 issues a warning prompting maintenance of the board holding unit 16. It may be output.

<Third Embodiment>
In the first embodiment, when a warning prompting maintenance of the substrate holding portion 16 is output, the configuration for cleaning the substrate holding portion 16 by the cleaning device 71 has been described. On the other hand, in the present embodiment, when a warning prompting maintenance of the substrate holding portion 16 is output, the substrate holding portion 16 is replaced. To replace the substrate holding portion 16, the substrate holding portion 16 mounted on the stage drive mechanism 17 shown in FIG. 5 is conveyed to the storage unit 72 by the transfer robot 61. After that, the cleaned substrate holding portion 16 is taken out from the storage portion 72 by the transfer robot 61 and placed on the stage drive mechanism 17. The inside of the storage unit 72 is divided into, for example, an area for storing the cleaned substrate holding unit 16 and an area for storing the substrate holding unit 16 lowered by the stage drive mechanism 17 for maintenance.

The cleaning device 71 and the storage unit 72 may be provided inside the imprint device 1 or may be provided outside the imprint device 1. When a warning prompting maintenance of the substrate holding unit 16 is output, the substrate holding unit 16 is first replaced with the cleaned substrate holding unit stored in the storage unit 72, and the imprint process is restarted. After that, the substrate holding unit 16 that requires maintenance may be transported from the storage unit 72 to the cleaning device 71 for cleaning. By doing so, it is possible to minimize the interruption time of the imprint process.

<Embodiment of Article Manufacturing Method>
The pattern of the cured product formed by using the imprint device is used permanently for at least a part of various articles or temporarily in manufacturing various articles. The article is an electric circuit element, an optical element, a MEMS, a recording element, a sensor, a mold, or the like. Examples of the electric circuit element include volatile or non-volatile semiconductor memories such as DRAM, SRAM, flash memory, and MRAM, and semiconductor elements such as LSI, CCD, image sensor, and FPGA. Examples of the mold include a mold for imprinting.

The pattern of the cured product is used as it is as a constituent member of at least a part of the above-mentioned article, or is temporarily used as a resist mask. The resist mask is removed after etching, ion implantation, or the like in the substrate processing process.

Next, the article manufacturing method will be described. As shown in FIG. 9A, a substrate 1z such as a silicon substrate on which a work material 2z such as an insulator is formed on the surface is prepared, and subsequently, a substrate 1z such as a silicon substrate is prepared and then injected into the surface of the work material 2z by an inkjet method or the like. The printing material 3z is applied. Here, a state in which a plurality of droplet-shaped imprint materials 3z are applied onto the substrate is shown.

As shown in FIG. 9B, the imprint mold 4z is opposed to the imprint material 3z on the substrate with the side on which the uneven pattern is formed facing. As shown in FIG. 9C, the substrate 1 to which the imprint material 3z is applied is brought into contact with the mold 4z, and pressure is applied. The imprint material 3z is filled in the gap between the mold 4z and the work material 2z. In this state, when light is irradiated through the mold 4z as energy for curing, the imprint material 3z is cured.

As shown in FIG. 9D, when the mold 4z and the substrate 1z are separated from each other after the imprint material 3z is cured, a pattern of the cured product of the imprint material 3z is formed on the substrate 1z. This pattern of cured product, the convex portion of the concave portion is a cured product of the mold, and a shape in which the convex portion of the mold is corresponding to the concave portion of the cured product, i.e., the uneven pattern of the mold 4z to imprint material 3z It has been transferred.

As shown in FIG. 9E, when etching is performed using the pattern of the cured product as an etching resistant type, the portion of the surface of the work material 2z that has no cured product or remains thin is removed, and the groove 5z is formed. Become. As shown in FIG. 9 (f), when the pattern of the cured product is removed, an article in which the groove 5z is formed on the surface of the work material 2z can be obtained. Here, the pattern of the cured product is removed, but it may not be removed even after processing, and may be used, for example, as a film for interlayer insulation contained in a semiconductor element or the like, that is, as a constituent member of an article.

(Other embodiments)
The present invention supplies a program that realizes one or more functions of the above-described embodiment to a system or device via a network or storage medium, and one or more processors in the computer of the system or device reads and executes the program. It can also be realized by the processing to be performed. It can also be realized by a circuit (for example, ASIC) that realizes one or more functions.

1: Imprint device, 2: Light irradiation unit, 4: Substrate stage, 6: Alignment measurement unit, 11: Mold holding unit, 16: Substrate holding unit

Claims (13)

A lithography system that forms a pattern on a substrate.
A substrate holding portion that holds the substrate and
An adjusting unit that adjusts the holding force of the substrate by the substrate holding unit,
A measuring unit that measures the amount of deformation of the substrate in the out-of-plane direction or the in-plane direction,
Said substrate contact state between the substrate and the substrate holding portion based on the deformation amount measured by the measuring unit while weakening the holding force by the adjusting unit from a state in which the substrate is held by the substrate holding portion A determination unit for determining whether or not there is an abnormality in which adhesion has occurred between the holding unit and the substrate, and a determination unit.
A lithographic apparatus characterized by having. The determination unit, if the holding force by the adjusting unit does not exceed the said deformation amount measured by the measuring unit is the threshold value when it is adjusted to a predetermined value, and the contact state is the abnormal The lithography apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the determination is made. The determination unit, according to claim 1, wherein the holding force when said amount deformation exceeds the threshold value by the measuring unit if weaker than a predetermined value, the contact state and judging said is abnormal The lithography apparatus described in. The measuring unit is configured to measure the amount of deformation of the substrate in the out-of-plane direction.
The lithography apparatus according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the threshold value is set to a value for determining the lift of the substrate from the substrate holding portion based on the amount of deformation in the out-of-plane direction. .. The measuring unit is configured to measure the amount of deformation of the substrate in the in-plane direction.
The lithography apparatus according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the threshold value is set to a value for determining slippage of the substrate with respect to the substrate holding portion based on the amount of deformation in the in-plane direction. After waiting for a predetermined time after the substrate is held by the substrate holding portion, the holding force is weakened, and then the holding force is restored, thereby causing a temperature difference between the substrate and the substrate holding portion. The lithography apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein a determination is performed by the determination unit in the strain removing process for removing the strain generated on the substrate. A lithography system that forms a pattern on a substrate.
A substrate holding portion that holds the substrate and
An adjusting unit that adjusts the holding force of the substrate by the substrate holding unit,
A measuring unit that measures the amount of deformation of the substrate in the out-of-plane direction,
Contact between the substrate holding portion and the substrate based on the amount of deformation in the out-of-plane direction measured by the measuring unit while weakening the holding force by the adjusting portion from the state where the substrate is held by the substrate holding portion. A judgment unit that determines whether the state is normal and
Have,
If the amount of deformation in the out-of-plane direction measured by the measuring unit does not exceed the threshold value when the holding force is adjusted to a predetermined value by the adjusting unit, the contact state is abnormal. It is configured to determine that
The threshold value is set to a value for determining the lift of the substrate from the substrate holding portion based on the amount of deformation in the out-of-plane direction.
A lithographic device characterized by that. A lithography system that forms a pattern on a substrate.
A substrate holding portion that holds the substrate and
An adjusting unit that adjusts the holding force of the substrate by the substrate holding unit,
A measuring unit that measures the amount of deformation of the substrate in the in-plane direction,
Contact between the substrate holding portion and the substrate based on the amount of deformation in the in-plane direction measured by the measuring unit while weakening the holding force by the adjusting portion from the state where the substrate is held by the substrate holding portion. A judgment unit that determines whether the state is normal and
Have,
When the holding force is adjusted to a predetermined value by the adjusting unit, the determination unit has an abnormal contact state if the amount of deformation in the in-plane direction measured by the measuring unit does not exceed the threshold value. It is configured to determine that
The threshold value is set to a value for determining slippage of the substrate with respect to the substrate holding portion based on the amount of deformation in the in-plane direction.
A lithographic device characterized by that. After waiting for a predetermined time after the substrate is held by the substrate holding portion, the holding force is weakened, and then the holding force is restored, thereby causing a temperature difference between the substrate and the substrate holding portion. The lithography apparatus according to claim 7 or 8, wherein a determination is performed by the determination unit in the strain removing process for removing the strain generated on the substrate. A lithography system that forms a pattern on a substrate.
A substrate holding portion that holds the substrate and
An adjusting unit that adjusts the holding force of the substrate by the substrate holding unit,
A measuring unit that measures the amount of deformation of the substrate,
Whether the contact state between the substrate holding unit and the substrate is normal based on the amount of deformation measured by the measuring unit while weakening the holding force by the adjusting unit from the state where the substrate is held by the substrate holding unit. Judgment unit that determines whether or not
Have,
After waiting for a predetermined time after the substrate is held by the substrate holding portion, the holding force is weakened, and then the holding force is restored, thereby causing a temperature difference between the substrate and the substrate holding portion. A lithography apparatus characterized in that a determination is performed by the determination unit in a strain removal process for removing strain generated on the substrate. It further has a substrate heating section that heats the substrate to correct the shape of the shot region of the substrate.
The lithography apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 10 , wherein the measuring unit measures the amount of deformation of the substrate heated by the substrate heating unit. The lithography apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 11 , wherein a warning is output when the determination unit determines that the contact state is abnormal. A step of forming a pattern on a substrate using the lithography apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 12.
A step of processing the substrate on which the pattern was formed in the step of forming, and a step of processing the substrate.
Have,
A method for producing an article, which comprises producing an article from the substrate processed in the process.

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