JPH0497256A - Formation of photoresist pattern - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to a method for forming a photoresist pattern for creating a thin film wiring pattern on the surface of a substrate made of an insulator, semiconductor, metal, etc. in the production of electronic components, etc. Regarding.

(Prior Art) In manufacturing electronic components and the like, a desired thin film wiring pattern is formed on the surface of a substrate made of an insulator, a semiconductor, a metal, etc. in the following manner.

A photoresist pattern having the same shape as the thin film wiring pattern is formed on the surface of the substrate on which a thin film has been formed by vapor deposition or the like. When this substrate surface is etched, only the portions of the thin film on the substrate surface that are not covered with the photoresist pattern are removed, and a desired thin film wiring pattern is formed.

Methods for forming a photoresist pattern include a method of performing exposure using a photomask and a method of performing exposure by direct drawing.

A method for performing exposure using a photomask is performed as follows.

First, a photoresist layer made of photosensitive ink or the like is provided on the surface of the substrate. The photoresist layer is sensitized by exposure to ultraviolet light or the like. After exposure, the photoresist layer can be removed by development.

Next, the surface of the photoresist layer is covered with a photomask.

A photomask is made of a film, a glass drying plate, or the like, and has a mask pattern formed thereon that blocks exposure to only a predetermined pattern portion.

By exposing the entire surface of the photomask to light using an ultraviolet lamp or the like, the portions of the photoresist layer that are not covered by the mask pattern are exposed.

By removing the exposed portion of the photoresist layer by development, a photoresist pattern is formed on the substrate surface.

The method of direct exposure uses a photo block that exposes while scanning a narrow beam of light, and is carried out as follows.

First, a photoresist layer is provided on the surface of the substrate.

Next, the photoresist layer is exposed to light using the photoplotter to directly draw a predetermined pattern.

A photoresist pattern is formed on the substrate surface by removing the exposed portions of the photoresist layer.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) However, the method of performing exposure using a photomask has the following problems.

In other words, since it is necessary to prepare a photomask in advance, it is not possible to quickly respond to design changes or modifications of the thin film wiring pattern. Since the photomask is set on the substrate surface each time a thin film wiring pattern is created, there is a risk of damage, contamination, etc. Furthermore, if a gap is created between the photomask and the substrate surface when the photomask is set, there is a risk that optical distortion will occur during exposure.

The following problems have been encountered with the method of exposure such as direct drawing.

In other words, since the photoresist layer is made of photosensitive ink or the like, its sensitivity to light exposure is low. As a result, when using a narrow beam of light from a photoplotter, it took time to fully expose the photoresist layer (for example, it took more than 30 minutes per substrate). ). Therefore, although this method was used on a trial basis, it was not suitable for mass production. In addition, since it occupies an expensive photoplotter for a long time, it is also a factor in increasing the cost of the product.

(Means for Solving the Problems) The photoresist pattern forming method of the present invention is a method for forming a photoresist pattern for creating a thin film wiring pattern on the surface of a substrate, the method comprising forming a photoresist layer on the surface of the substrate. , forming a photosensitive mask layer on the surface of this photoresist layer, which is sensitive to light with higher sensitivity than the photoresist layer, and exposing the photosensitive mask layer to draw a predetermined pattern directly on the photosensitive mask layer. forming a mask pattern on the photoresist layer by exposing the photoresist layer and removing the exposed portions of the photosensitive mask layer; and exposing the entire surface of the substrate to light. The method includes the steps of exposing the portions of the photoresist layer that are not covered by the pattern, and then removing the exposed portions of the photoresist layer.

(Operation) A photoresist layer is formed on the surface of the substrate, and a photosensitive mask layer is laminated on the surface of this photoresist layer.

The photosensitive mask layer is exposed to light so that a predetermined pattern is directly drawn thereon. A mask pattern is formed on the photoresist layer by removing the exposed portions of the photosensitive mask layer.

By exposing the entire surface of the substrate to light, the portions of the photoresist layer that are not covered by the mask pattern are exposed. A photoresist pattern is formed on the substrate surface by removing the exposed portion of the photoresist layer.

(Example) Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

1 to 6 show each step of the photoresist pattern forming method.

Hereinafter, the procedure for forming a photoresist pattern will be explained with reference to FIGS. 1 to 6.

As shown in FIG. 1, mtl! A photoresist layer 2 is laminated on the substrate surface 11 of the substrate 1 on which la is formed. When the photoresist layer 2 is sensitized by exposure, it becomes removable by development. The photoresist layer 2 is made of, for example, photosensitive ink and is resistant to etching and the like.

As shown in FIG. 2, a photosensitive mask layer 3 is laminated on the photoresist layer 2. As shown in FIG. When the photosensitive mask layer 3 is sensitized by exposure, it becomes removable by development. The photosensitive mask layer 3 is made of, for example, a photosensitive emulsion, has higher sensitivity than the photoresist layer 2, and can be exposed to light in a short time even when exposed to light beams having a narrow width. However, although the photosensitive mask layer 3 has higher sensitivity than the photoresist layer 2, it does not need to be resistant to etching and the like like the photoresist layer 2.

As shown in FIG. 3, exposure is performed so that a predetermined pattern is directly drawn on the photosensitive mask layer 3 using a photoplotter (not shown) that exposes the photosensitive mask layer 3 with a narrow beam of light. Since the photosensitive mask layer 3 has high sensitivity, the exposed portions of the photosensitive mask layer 3 are exposed to light in a short time.

As shown in FIG. 4, by removing the exposed portions 32 of the photosensitive mask layer 3 by development, a mask pattern 33 of the photosensitive mask layer 3 is formed on the photoresist layer 2. be done.

As shown in FIG. 5, by exposing the entire surface of the substrate 11 to light using an ultraviolet lamp (not shown), the portions of the photoresist layer 2 that are not covered by the mask patterns 33 are exposed.

As shown in FIG. 6, when the exposed portions 22 of the photoresist layer 2 are removed by development, only the portions 21 of the photoresist layer 2 covered with the mask patterns 33 are removed. A photoresist pattern 23 is then formed on the remaining substrate surface 11.

The above example is an example in which the present invention is applied to the creation of a thin film wiring pattern by a so-called etching method, but it can also be applied to the so-called lift-off method in which a thin film wiring pattern is created by vapor deposition from above a photoresist pattern. .

In the above example, the photoresist 112 is laminated on the substrate surface 11 of the substrate 1, and then the photosensitive mask layer 3 is laminated on the photoresist layer 2, but the present invention is not limited to this.

For example, a dry film 4 (see FIG. 10) in which a photoresist film 5 serving as the photoresist layer 2 and a mask film 6 serving as the photosensitive mask layer 3 are bonded together is prepared, and this dry film 4 is It may be laminated on the substrate surface 11.

The photoresist film 5 is, as shown in FIG. 7, a photoresist 51 and a protective film 52 laminated thereon.

As shown in FIG. 8, the mask film 6 has a base film 61 coated with a photosensitive emulsion 62 for use as a mask.

A photoresist film 5 and a mask film 6 are bonded together to form a dry film 4 in the following manner (
(See Figure 9).

The photoresist film 5 is wound around the roller 91, and the mask film 6 is wound around the roller 92. Photoresist film 5 from both rollers 91 and 92
and mask film 6 are each fed out.

Both films 5.6 are pasted together with rollers 93°93
In this manner, the surfaces of the 52 protective films and the 62 photosensitive emulsions for masks are bonded together (see FIG. 10). The dry film 4 after both films 5.6 are bonded together is wound by a winding roller 94.

Hereinafter, a method of forming a photoresist pattern 23 on the substrate surface 11 using this dry film 4 will be explained with reference to FIGS. 3 to 6.

First, dry film 4 is placed on photoresist film 5.
is laminated on the substrate surface 11 such that it faces the substrate surface 11.

As shown in FIG. 3, the photosensitive mask layer '3 (mask film 6) is exposed to light so as to directly draw a predetermined pattern using a photoplotter.

The exposed portions of the photosensitive mask layer 3 are exposed to light in a short time.

As shown in FIG. 4, mask patterns 33 are formed on the photoresist layer 2 (photoresist film 5) by removing the exposed portions 32 of the photosensitive mask layer 3 by development. be done.

As shown in FIG. 5, by exposing the entire surface of the substrate 11 to light using an ultraviolet lamp, the portions of the photoresist layer 2 that are not covered by the mask patterns 33 are exposed.

As shown in FIG. 6, when the exposed portions 22 of the photoresist layer 2 are removed by development, only the portions 21 of the photoresist layer 2 covered with the mask patterns 33 are removed. A photoresist pattern 23 is then formed on the remaining substrate surface 11.

(Effects of the Invention) As described above, according to the present invention, there is no need to prepare a photomask on which a predetermined pattern is formed, and therefore it is possible to immediately respond to changes and corrections of the thin film wiring pattern. There is no risk of damage or contamination of the photomask. Since the photosensitive mask layer is laminated on the photoresist layer, there is no gap between the photosensitive mask layer and the photoresist layer, and there is no risk of optical distortion occurring during exposure. .

Further, according to the present invention, since the photosensitive mask layer is more sensitive than the photoresist layer, it requires less time to occupy an expensive photoplotter than when directly exposing the photoresist layer with a photoplotter.

As a result, the cost of the product does not increase, and mass production can be fully supported.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 to 6 are process diagrams showing each step of a photoresist pattern forming method according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a photoresist film serving as a photoresist layer, and FIG. 8 9 is a perspective view showing a mask film serving as a photosensitive mask layer, FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a process of laminating a photoresist film and a mask film, and FIG.
The figure is a perspective view showing the dry film in a bonded state. 33...Mask pattern [R] 11...Substrate surface 2...Photoresist layer 22...Exposed portion 23...Photoresist pattern 3...Photosensitive mask layer 32... Exposed part 2nd L71 ＼ i+ 3rd figure z ] Z 71st- 134th ＼ Iki 5th figure 614 914

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1) A method for forming a photoresist pattern for creating a thin film wiring pattern on the surface of a substrate, the method comprising: forming a photoresist layer on the surface of the substrate; A step of forming a photosensitive mask layer that is sensitive to light with higher sensitivity than that of the photosensitive mask layer, and exposing the photosensitive mask layer so as to directly draw a predetermined pattern on the photosensitive mask layer to expose the photosensitive mask layer. forming a mask pattern on the photoresist layer by removing the exposed portions of the layer; and exposing the portions of the photoresist layer not covered by the mask pattern by exposing the entire surface of the substrate to light; A method for forming a photoresist pattern, comprising the step of subsequently removing the exposed portion of the photoresist layer.