Thin film deposition apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9873937-B2
Application number	US-201514838219-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 27, 2015
Priority date	May 22, 2009
Publication date	Jan 23, 2018
Grant date	Jan 23, 2018

Abstract

A thin film deposition apparatus used to produce large substrates on a mass scale and improve manufacturing yield. The thin film deposition apparatus includes a deposition source; a first nozzle disposed at a side of the deposition source and including a plurality of first slits arranged in a first direction; a second nozzle disposed opposite to the first nozzle and including a plurality of second slits arranged in the first direction; and a barrier wall assembly including a plurality of barrier walls arranged in the first direction so as to partition a space between the first nozzle and the second nozzle.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A thin film deposition apparatus to form a thin film on a substrate, the thin film deposition apparatus comprising:
a deposition source to discharge a deposition material;
a first nozzle disposed at a side of the deposition source and including a plurality of first slits arranged in a first direction;
a second nozzle disposed opposite to the first nozzle and including a plurality of second slits arranged in the first direction, and spaced apart from the substrate; and a barrier wall assembly including a plurality of barrier walls arranged in the first direction between the first nozzle and the second nozzle so as to partition a space between the first nozzle and the second nozzle into a plurality of sub-deposition spaces, a distance between adjacent barrier walls of the plurality of barrier walls in the first direction being greater than a distance in the first direction between any two adjacent second slits of the plurality of second slits,
wherein the deposition material from the first nozzle is patterned on the substrate by the second nozzle in a pattern in which the deposition material is deposited at first regions on the substrate corresponding to the second slits and is not deposited at second regions on the substrate adjacent the first regions, and
wherein, in a state in which the second nozzle for patterning the deposition material on the substrate is adjacent to the substrate and not coupled to the substrate, deposition is performed while the substrate moves with respect to the thin film deposition apparatus in a direction perpendicular to the first direction.

2. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 1 , wherein each of the barrier walls extends in a second direction substantially perpendicular to the first direction, so as to partition the space between the first and second nozzles into the sub-deposition spaces.

3. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the first slits is located between each two adjacent barrier walls.

4. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 1 , wherein at least two of the second slits are located between each two adjacent barrier walls.

5. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 1 , wherein a number of the second slits disposed between each two adjacent barrier walls is greater than a number of the first slits disposed between each two adjacent barrier walls.

6. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 1 , wherein a total number of the second slits is greater than a total number of the first slits.

7. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the barrier walls are arranged at equal intervals.

8. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the barrier walls are spaced apart from the second nozzle.

9. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the barrier wall assembly further comprises a cooling member.

10. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the cooling member comprises a cooling fin formed to protrude from an outer surface of the barrier wall assembly.

11. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a second nozzle frame bound to the second nozzle and supporting the second nozzle.

12. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the second nozzle frame exerts a tensile force on the second nozzle.

13. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the second nozzle is bound to the second nozzle frame in a state where an initial tensile force is applied to the second nozzle and a compression force is applied to the second nozzle frame, the initial tensile force being in equilibrium with the compression force, and the second nozzle and the second nozzle frame are relieved from the initial tensile force and the compression force, so that the tensile force is exerted on the second nozzle.

14. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 11 , wherein a temperature of the second nozzle frame is maintained substantially constant during a deposition process.

15. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the second nozzle frame further comprises a radiation fin.

16. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 11 , further comprising a thermal shield disposed between the deposition source and the second nozzle frame.

17. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the barrier wall assembly is detachable from the thin film deposition apparatus.

18. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the thin film deposition apparatus is disposed in a vacuum chamber.

19. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the second nozzle is separated by a predetermined distance from the substrate.

20. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the deposition source, the first nozzle, the second nozzle, and the barrier wall assembly are movable relative to the substrate.

21. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 20 , wherein the deposition material is deposited on the substrate while the deposition source, the first nozzle, the second nozzle, and the barrier wall assembly are moved relative to the substrate.

22. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 20 , wherein the deposition source, the first nozzle, the second nozzle, and the barrier wall assembly are moved relative to the substrate along a plane parallel to a surface of the substrate.

23. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the deposition material vaporized in the deposition source passes through the first nozzle and the second nozzle and is then deposited on the substrate.

24. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a plurality of calibration plates disposed between the first nozzle and the second nozzle and blocking at least one portion of the deposition material discharged from the deposition source.

25. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 24 , wherein the calibration plates are disposed in such a manner that portions of the thin film defined by the sub-deposition spaces, respectively, have identical thicknesses.

26. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 24 , wherein each of the calibration plates is formed to be lower in height the further away from a center of each of the sub-deposition spaces.

27. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 26 , wherein each of the calibration plates has a circular arc or cosine curve shape.

28. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 24 , wherein a height of each of the calibration plates is less at the center of each of the sub-deposition spaces than at both ends of each of the sub-deposition spaces.

29. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 24 , wherein the calibration plates are disposed so as to block a larger amount of the deposition material at the center of each of the sub-deposition spaces than at the ends of each of the sub-deposition spaces.

30. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 24 , wherein each of the calibration plates is disposed between two adjacent barrier walls.

31. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 24 , wherein the calibration plates are formed in the sub-deposition spaces, respectively, and
a size or shape of the calibration plates disposed in each of the sub-deposition spaces is changeable according to characteristics of the deposition material disc

Assignees

• Samsung Display Co Ltd

Inventors

• Lee Choong-Ho
• Lee Jung-Min

Classifications

• C23C14/24 Primary

  Vacuum evaporation · CPC title

• C23C14/243

  Crucibles for source material (C23C14/28, C23C14/30 take precedence) · CPC title

• C23C14/04 Primary

  Coating on selected surface areas, e.g. using masks · CPC title

• Y10T29/49826

  Assembling or joining · CPC title

• Y10T29/49828

  Progressively advancing of work assembly station or assembled portion of work · CPC title