JPH041512B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Technical Field of the Invention] The present invention relates to a fine movement mechanism for rotating and rectilinearly moving an object position with high precision.

[Technical background of the invention and its problems]

In recent years, electron beam lithography equipment, reduction projection type transcription equipment, X-ray transcription equipment, etc. have been developed to form fine patterns on samples such as semiconductor wafers and mask substrates. In order to maintain accuracy, a fine movement mechanism is required to drive minute displacements. Further, a fine movement mechanism with high precision is required not only in the above-mentioned apparatus but also in fields where precise measurements are performed using measuring instruments.

Fine movement mechanisms include those that move in a uniaxial direction and those that perform rotational movement, but conventional rotary fine movement mechanisms that perform rotational movement have the following problems. That is, if the stroke is long, it is difficult to perform fine movement, and if the stroke is possible, the stroke cannot be made long. Furthermore, although there is a demand for a fine movement mechanism that can perform both rotational and linear movements, no such mechanism has yet been reported that is capable of fine movement and has a long stroke.

[Purpose of the invention]

An object of the present invention is to provide a fine movement mechanism that can perform rotational and linear fine movement using the same drive source and can have a sufficiently long stroke.

[Summary of the invention]

The gist of the present invention is to apply an appropriate voltage to a member having a piezoelectric effect (a function that expands and contracts in response to applied voltage), and causes the member to expand and contract, thereby causing fine movement.

That is, in the present invention, at least three movable members are movably placed on a base, and each of the movable members is attached to both ends of a drive member that expands and contracts in response to an applied voltage in the direction of expansion and contraction. A fixing member is provided for connecting adjacent members and fixing each of the movable members on the base, and an elastic member is provided for connecting the movable members, thereby controlling the expansion and contraction of the drive member and fixing the fixed member. The action causes the moving member to rotate and move in a straight line.

〔Effect of the invention〕

According to the present invention, the rotation of the movable member by the same driving source is achieved by appropriately combining each expansion and contraction action of a plurality of drive members (same number as the number of movable members) and each fixation action of a plurality of fixed members. Movement and linear movement are possible. In addition, there is no disadvantage that the stroke becomes extremely small when fine movement is performed as in the conventional mechanism, and a sufficiently long stroke can be obtained with fine movement, and in principle, infinite rotation and straight movement are possible. Therefore, mechanisms for blocking and fine movement are not required. Furthermore, since the movable member is directly driven by a drive member made of a piezoelectric element as a drive source, it is possible to reliably perform ultra-fine movement of, for example, 0.005 [μm] with an applied voltage of 1 [V]. moreover,
A member having a piezoelectric effect can generate a force of several hundred kilograms to several tons, depending on the magnitude of the applied voltage, and can provide a fine movement mechanism that generates a large torque. can.

Further, since the present invention has an extremely simple configuration and does not use any parts that may break down, it is sufficiently reliable even when used by being incorporated into measuring instruments or various semiconductor devices. Furthermore, in devices that use charged particles such as electron beams and ion beams, the charged particles are affected by fluctuations in the magnetic field, but in the present invention, all constituent materials can be made of non-magnetic materials, and this point can be overcome. Therefore, it is extremely useful for devices that use charged particles. Further, in the present invention, since the movable members are connected by the elastic member, the impact between the movable member and the driving member can be alleviated, so that the fine movement mechanism has excellent mechanical strength and is easy to design.

[Embodiments of the invention]

1A to 1C respectively show the basic structure of a fine movement mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 1A is a plan view, FIG. 1B is a sectional view taken along arrow A-A in FIG.
FIG. 1c is a sectional view taken along the line B--B in FIG. 1a. In the figure, reference numerals 1, 2, 3, and 4 are rectangular plate-shaped movable members, and these movable members 1, 2, 3, and 4 are placed on a conductive base 5 at intervals so as to form a square as a whole. ing. Adjacent moving members 1, . . . , 4 are connected by drive members 6, 7, 8, and 9, respectively. That is, a driving member 6 is provided between the moving members 1 and 2, a driving member 7 is provided between the moving members 2 and 3, a driving member 8 is provided between the moving members 3 and 4, and a driving member 8 is provided between the moving members 4 and 1. A drive member 9 is provided. The driving members 6, . 4 are respectively attached and fixed. Note that this fixing may be done by adhesion, screwing, press-fitting, or the like. Further, a variable voltage power source 11a is connected to the driving member 6 via a switch 10a, and a power source 11b is connected to the driving member 7 via a switch 10b.
However, the driving member 8 is connected to a power source 11c via a switch 10c, and the driving member 9 is connected to a power source 11d via a switch 10d.

On the other hand, an electrostatic chuck (fixed member) 12 consisting of an electrode 12a and insulating layers 12b and 12c is provided at the bottom of the moving member 1, and similarly, an electrostatic chuck (fixed member) 12 is provided at the bottom of the moving members 2, -, 4. 13,1
4 and 15 are provided, respectively. These moving members 1, . . .
By connecting the power supply 17a via 6a,
It is designed to be fixed on the base 5 by suction. In addition, in the figure, 13a, -, 15a are electrodes, 13b,
~, 15b, 13c, ~15c are insulating layers, 16
b, ~, 16d are switches, 17b, ~, 17d
indicates the power supply.

The operation of the mechanism of this embodiment configured as described above will be explained.

First, in order to make a rotational movement, use the electrostatic chuck 1.
After the movable members 3 and 4 are fixed on the base 5 by means 4 and 15, the drive member 7 is extended and the drive member 9 is contracted as shown in FIG. 2a. This causes the drive members 1 and 2 to rotate slightly in the direction of arrow P. Next, after the movable members 1 and 2 are fixed on the base 5 by the electrostatic chucks 12 and 13, the fixation of the movable members 3 and 4 by the electrostatic chucks 14 and 15 is released. In this state, when the drive member 7 is contracted and the drive member 9 is extended as shown in FIG. 2B, the movable members 3 and 4 are slightly rotated in the direction of arrow P. By repeating the above operations, the moving members 1, . . . , 4 are rotated in the direction of arrow P.

For linear motion, electrostatic chuck 13,1
After the movable members 2 and 3 are fixed on the base 5 by means 4, the driving members 6 and 8 are extended together as shown in FIG. 3a. As a result, the movable members 1 and 4 are moved by the arrow Q
Make a small movement (straight line movement) in the direction. Next, the moving members 1 and 4 are moved to the base 5 by the electrostatic chucks 12 and 15.
After fixing the electrostatic chucks 13 and 14 on the
The fixation of the moving members 2 and 3 is released. In this state, when the drive members 6 and 8 are both retracted as shown in FIG. 3B, the movable members 2 and 3 are slightly moved in the direction of the arrow Q. By repeating the above operations, the movable members 1, . . . , 4 are caused to move straight in the direction of the arrow Q.

Thus, according to this embodiment, the moving members 1, -,
4 can be rotated or linearly moved, and it is also possible to perform rotational and linear movement simultaneously. Furthermore, the direction of motion of the movable members 1, . Can be set.

FIG. 4 is a plan view showing how an elastic member is added to the basic structure of FIG. 1a. Note that the same parts as in FIG. 1a are given the same reference numerals, and detailed explanation thereof will be omitted. In FIG. 4, in addition to the basic configuration described above, the moving members 1, . . . , 4 are connected by an elastic hinge that utilizes elastic deformation of the material. With such a configuration, it is possible to not only produce the effects described above, but also reduce the impact caused by the drive members 6, . . . , 9 and the electrostatic chucks 12, . It has the effect of

Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above. In the above embodiment, a case was explained in which four moving members and four driving members were used.
These can be changed as appropriate as long as the number is three or more. For example, when there are three moving members 31, 32, 33 and a driving member 3 as shown in FIG.
4, 35, and 36, the driving members 34, 35 may be extended and contracted alternately in order to rotate, and the driving members 34, 35 may be extended and contracted simultaneously in order to move straight. Furthermore, in this case, the moving member 31,
The elastic hinge 37 provided between the drive members 34, 33 and the drive members 34, 36 makes it possible to buffer the strain generated between each member.

Further, the shape, dimensions, etc. of the moving member may be determined as appropriate according to specifications. Furthermore, the fixing member is not necessarily limited to an electrostatic chuck, but may be an electromagnetic chuck or other material. Also,
The driving method of the movable member that combines the expansion and contraction action of the driving member and the fixing action of the fixed member may be changed as appropriate depending on conditions such as the desired movement and its direction. Furthermore, the voltage applied to the driving member is
It may be determined as appropriate depending on conditions such as desired movement speed and amount of movement. In addition, various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

1A to 1C respectively show the basic structure of a fine movement mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 1A is a plan view, FIG. 1B is a sectional view taken along arrow A-A in FIG.
Fig. 1c is a sectional view taken along arrow B-B in Fig. 2a, Figs. 5th plan view showing the main part configuration when a hinge is provided;
The figure is a plan view showing a modified example. 1, ~, 4, 31, ~, 33... moving member, 5
...Base, 6, -, 9, 34, -, 36... Drive member, 10a, -, 10d, 16a, -, 16d
...Switch, 11a, ~, 11d, 17a,
〜, 17d...Power supply, 12, 〜, 15...Electrostatic chuck (fixing member), 12a, 〜, 14a...Electrode, 12b, 〜, 14b, 12d, 〜, 14d...
...Insulating layer, 21,37...Elastic hinge.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. At least three movably placed on a base
a driving member which is made of a piezoelectric element that expands and contracts according to an applied voltage and has each of the above-mentioned moving members attached to both ends in the direction of expansion and contraction and which connects adjacent moving members; Each of the movable members is provided with a fixing member selectively fixed on the base and an elastic member connecting the movable members, and the movable members are rotated and moved in a straight line by the expansion and contraction action of the driving member and the fixing action of the fixed member. A fine movement mechanism that is characterized by 2. The fine movement mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the moving member is arranged radially with respect to an axis that should be a rotation center. 3. The fine movement mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the fixed member is formed by forming an electrostatic chuck consisting of an electrode and a dielectric layer on the surface layer of each moving member. 4. The fine movement mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the elastic member is an elastic hinge that utilizes the elasticity of a material. 5. The base and each member are made of a non-magnetic material, lead zirconate titanate is used as the piezoelectric element having an expansion and contraction action, and beryllium copper, aluminum or titanium is used as other constituent materials. A fine movement mechanism according to claim 1.