CN110344003B

CN110344003B - Vapor deposition mask, precursor thereof, and method for manufacturing organic semiconductor element

Info

Publication number: CN110344003B
Application number: CN201910716987.XA
Authority: CN
Inventors: 武田利彦; 川崎博司; 小幡胜也
Original assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co Ltd
Current assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co Ltd
Priority date: 2014-06-06
Filing date: 2015-05-29
Publication date: 2022-03-15
Anticipated expiration: 2035-05-29
Also published as: CN106536784A; CN110331365B; JP7191060B2; JP6687137B2; JP2020143371A; CN110306156A; CN110344003A; CN106536784B; JP2022031428A; JP2016033265A; JP2019070200A; JP6471680B2; CN110331365A

Abstract

The invention provides a vapor deposition mask, a vapor deposition mask precursor for obtaining the vapor deposition mask, a framed vapor deposition mask provided with the vapor deposition mask, and a method for manufacturing an organic semiconductor element using the framed vapor deposition mask, wherein the vapor deposition mask can satisfy both high definition and light weight, and can accurately confirm whether a shape pattern formed in an opening of a resin mask is normal. The vapor deposition mask (100) is formed by laminating a metal mask (10) having a slit (15) formed therein and a resin mask (20) having an opening (25) formed at a position overlapping the slit and corresponding to a pattern to be produced by vapor deposition, and uses a resin mask having a light transmittance of 40% or less at a wavelength of 550nm, thereby solving the above-described problems.

Description

Vapor deposition mask, precursor thereof, and method for manufacturing organic semiconductor element

The present application is a divisional application of the chinese invention "vapor deposition mask and precursor thereof, and method for manufacturing organic semiconductor device" filed on 29/5/2015 and having application number 201580022365.7.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a vapor deposition mask, a framed vapor deposition mask, a vapor deposition mask precursor, and a method for manufacturing an organic semiconductor element.

Background

With the increase in size of products using organic EL elements and the increase in size of substrates, there is an increasing demand for larger vapor deposition masks. Further, a metal plate used for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask made of metal is also large in size. However, in the current metal working technology, it is difficult to form the opening portion with high accuracy on a large metal plate, and it is not possible to cope with the high definition of the opening portion. In addition, when the vapor deposition mask is made of metal only, the mass thereof increases with the increase in size, and the total mass including the frame also increases, which hinders the operation.

Under such circumstances, patent document 1 discloses a vapor deposition mask in which a metal mask provided with slits and a resin mask having a plurality of rows of openings located in the surface of the metal mask and corresponding to a pattern to be produced by vapor deposition are stacked. According to the vapor deposition mask disclosed in patent document 1, even when the mask is large in size, both high definition and light weight can be satisfied, and further, a high-definition vapor deposition pattern can be formed.

Documents of the prior art

Patent document

Patent document 1: japanese patent No. 5288072

Disclosure of Invention

Problems to be solved by the invention

The main subject of the invention is to provide a vapor deposition mask which can satisfy both high-precision and light-weight and can check whether the shape pattern formed in the opening of the resin mask is normal or not accurately; and providing a vapor deposition mask precursor for obtaining the vapor deposition mask; and providing a framed vapor deposition mask provided with the vapor deposition mask; further provided is a method for manufacturing an organic semiconductor element using the framed vapor deposition mask.

Means for solving the problems

The present invention for solving the above-described problems provides a vapor deposition mask comprising a stack of a metal mask having a slit formed therein and a resin mask having an opening formed at a position overlapping the slit and corresponding to a pattern to be formed by vapor deposition, wherein the resin mask has a light transmittance of 40% or less at a wavelength of 550 nm.

In the invention, it is preferable that the resin mask contains a coloring material component. The thickness of the resin mask is preferably 3 μm or more and less than 10 μm.

The present invention for solving the above-described problems provides a vapor deposition mask with a frame, which is obtained by fixing a vapor deposition mask to a frame, wherein the vapor deposition mask is formed by laminating a metal mask having a slit formed therein and a resin mask having an opening corresponding to a pattern to be produced by vapor deposition formed at a position overlapping the slit, and the resin mask has a light transmittance of 40% or less for a light having a wavelength of 550 nm.

The present invention for solving the above-described problems provides a vapor deposition mask precursor for obtaining a vapor deposition mask in which a metal mask having slits and a resin mask having openings corresponding to a pattern to be produced by vapor deposition are laminated at positions overlapping the slits, the vapor deposition mask precursor being characterized in that the metal mask having the slits is laminated on one surface of a resin plate, and the resin plate has a transmittance of 40% or less for light having a wavelength of 550 nm.

The present invention for solving the above-described problems includes a process for forming a vapor deposition pattern on a vapor deposition object using a framed vapor deposition mask in which a vapor deposition mask is fixed to a frame, wherein in the process for forming the vapor deposition pattern, the vapor deposition mask fixed to the frame is laminated with a metal mask having a slit formed therein and a resin mask having an opening corresponding to a pattern to be produced by vapor deposition formed at a position overlapping the slit, and the resin mask has a light transmittance of 40% or less for a light having a wavelength of 550 nm.

ADVANTAGEOUS EFFECTS OF INVENTION

According to the vapor deposition mask and the framed vapor deposition mask of the present invention, it is possible to check whether or not the shape pattern formed in the opening of the resin mask is normal and accurate while satisfying both high definition and light weight. Further, according to the vapor deposition mask precursor of the present invention, a vapor deposition mask having the above-described characteristics can be easily produced. In addition, according to the method for manufacturing an organic semiconductor element of the present invention, the organic semiconductor element can be manufactured with high accuracy.

Drawings

Fig. 1(a) is a front view of a vapor deposition mask according to an embodiment as viewed from a metal mask side, and (b) is a sectional view taken along line a-a of (a);

fig. 2 is a front view of the vapor deposition mask according to embodiment (a) as viewed from the metal mask side;

fig. 3 is a front view of the vapor deposition mask according to embodiment (a) as viewed from the metal mask side;

fig. 4 is a front view of the vapor deposition mask according to embodiment (a) as viewed from the metal mask side;

fig. 5 is a front view of the vapor deposition mask according to embodiment (a) as viewed from the metal mask side;

fig. 6 is a front view of the vapor deposition mask according to embodiment (B) as viewed from the metal mask side;

fig. 7 is a front view of the vapor deposition mask according to embodiment (B) as viewed from the metal mask side;

fig. 8(a) to (d) are schematic sectional views of vapor deposition masks each schematically showing a state in which light is transmitted through a resin mask, (a) to (c) are vapor deposition masks according to an embodiment, and (d) are comparative vapor deposition masks;

fig. 9 is a front view showing an example of a vapor deposition mask with a frame;

fig. 10 is a front view showing an example of a vapor deposition mask with a frame;

FIG. 11 is a front view showing an example of a frame;

FIGS. 12(a) to (e) are shadow views of samples 1, 2, 4 to 6 of the resin mask, respectively.

Description of the marks

100 … vapor deposition mask

10 … Metal mask

15 … slit

16 … through hole

20 … resin mask

25 … opening part

40 … coloring material layer

60 … frame

200 … vapor deposition mask with frame

Detailed Description

Vapor deposition mask

The vapor deposition mask 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be specifically described below. As shown in fig. 1, a vapor deposition mask 100 according to one embodiment is configured by stacking a metal mask 10 having a slit 15 formed therein and a resin mask 20 having an opening 25 formed at a position overlapping the slit 15 and corresponding to a pattern to be formed by vapor deposition. Fig. 1(a) is a front view of a vapor deposition mask according to an embodiment as viewed from the metal mask 10 side, and (b) is a schematic sectional view taken along line a-a of (a).

(resin mask)

As shown in fig. 1, the resin mask 20 is provided with a plurality of openings 25. Further, the vapor deposition mask 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention is characterized in that the resin mask 20 has a light transmittance at a wavelength of 550nm of 40% or less.

When a vapor deposition pattern is formed on a surface to be vapor deposited of a vapor deposition object using the vapor deposition mask 100 according to one embodiment, the surface to be vapor deposited of the vapor deposition object and a surface of the vapor deposition mask 100 on the side of the resin mask 20 are opposed to each other, and the surface to be vapor deposited of the vapor deposition object and the resin mask 20 of the vapor deposition mask are brought into close contact with each other. Then, the vapor deposition material discharged from the vapor deposition source is attached to the vapor deposition surface of the vapor deposition target through the openings 25 formed in the resin mask 20, thereby forming a vapor deposition pattern corresponding to the openings 25 formed in the resin mask 20 on the vapor deposition surface of the vapor deposition target. The Vapor Deposition method using the Vapor Deposition mask according to one embodiment is not limited at all, and examples thereof include a Physical Vapor Deposition method (Physical Vapor Deposition) such as sputtering, vacuum Deposition, ion plating, and electron beam Deposition, a chemical Vapor Deposition method (chemical Vapor Deposition) such as thermal CVD, plasma CVD, and optical CVD.

That is, in the above method of forming a vapor deposition pattern on the vapor deposition surface of the vapor deposition object, the vapor deposition pattern formed on the vapor deposition surface of the vapor deposition object is determined by the opening pattern formed in the openings 25 of the resin mask 20. Therefore, it is essential to form the opening pattern of the openings 25 in the resin mask 20 of the vapor deposition mask 100 as a vapor deposition pattern to be formed on the vapor deposition surface of the vapor deposition object, and before the vapor deposition mask is used, that is, after the vapor deposition mask is manufactured, it is necessary to check whether or not the opening pattern of the openings 25 formed in the resin mask 20 of the vapor deposition mask 100 is formed as a vapor deposition pattern to be formed on the vapor deposition surface of the vapor deposition object.

As one of the inspection methods for determining whether or not the opening pattern of the opening 25 of the resin mask 20 formed in the vapor deposition mask 100 is a vapor deposition pattern to be formed on the vapor deposition surface of the vapor deposition object, there is a method of: the inspection of the opening pattern formed in the resin mask 20 is performed by using a shadow formed by a region through which visible light is transmitted, a region through which the visible light is not transmitted, or a region through which the visible light is hardly transmitted, in the resin mask 20 by irradiating the resin mask 20 with visible light. Specifically, the following method is used: the inspection of the opening pattern formed in the resin mask 20 is performed by irradiating the resin mask 20 with visible light from the surface of the resin mask 20 not in contact with the metal mask 10 and capturing the transmitted light by a camera from the surface of the metal mask 10 not in contact with the resin mask 20, or by irradiating the resin mask 20 with visible light from the surface of the metal mask 10 not in contact with the resin mask 20 and capturing the transmitted light by a camera from the surface of the resin mask 20 not in contact with the metal mask 10 and using a shadow obtained by the captured transmitted light.

In the case where the inspection of the aperture pattern is performed, when the mask having the apertures formed therein is made of a metal material which does not transmit visible light, the contrast of the shade of the aperture pattern formed in the apertures of the mask is high, and the inspection of the aperture pattern can be performed without any problem. On the other hand, in the case where the mask having the openings is made of a resin material which transmits visible light, there is a problem that the contrast of the shade of the opening pattern formed in the openings of the mask is reduced, and the inspection of the opening pattern cannot be sufficiently performed. That is, in the vapor deposition mask having a structure in which the metal mask 10 having the slit 15 formed therein and the resin mask 20 having the opening 25 formed at the position overlapping with the slit 15 and corresponding to the pattern to be formed by vapor deposition are stacked, both high definition and light weight can be satisfied, there is a problem inherent in that the inspection of the opening pattern formed in the opening of the resin mask cannot be accurately performed. However, the vapor deposition mask satisfying both high definition and light weight is not considered about the visible light transmittance when the resin mask 20 is irradiated with visible light, and specifically, is not considered about the visible light transmittance in the region of the resin mask 20 where the openings 25 are not formed (hereinafter, may be referred to as "opening non-formation region"). In order to improve the contrast between the light and the shade of the captured transmitted light, it is preferable that only the opening 25 of the resin mask 20 transmit visible light, and the region where the opening of the resin mask 20 is not formed does not transmit visible light, or the transmittance thereof is low. However, in the conventional resin mask in which the transmittance of visible light is not considered at all, visible light is transmitted also in the non-aperture-forming region of the resin mask, and the contrast of the shade captured by the camera is lowered, and it is difficult to accurately grasp the edge portion of the shade, in other words, the edge portion of the aperture pattern formed in the aperture 25 of the resin mask 20. If the edge portion cannot be accurately grasped, it is difficult to check whether or not the opening pattern of the vapor deposition mask 100 formed in the openings 25 of the resin mask 20 is a vapor deposition pattern that is desired to be formed on the vapor deposition surface of the vapor deposition object.

The vapor deposition mask 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention is characterized in that the transmittance of light having a wavelength of 550nm of the resin mask 20 is 40% or less, and according to this vapor deposition mask 100, when visible light is irradiated to the resin mask 20, the visible light is suppressed from transmitting through the non-formation-region of the opening of the resin mask 20, the contrast of the shade photographed by the camera is improved, and the edge of the shade, in other words, the edge of the opening pattern formed in the opening 25 of the resin mask 20, can be accurately grasped. This makes it possible to determine whether or not the opening pattern of the vapor deposition mask 100 formed in the openings 25 of the resin mask 20 is a vapor deposition pattern desired to be formed on the vapor deposition surface of the vapor deposition object. In particular, according to the vapor deposition mask of one embodiment of the present invention, since the openings 25 are formed in the mask made of a resin material, the openings 25 of the mask can be formed as high-definition openings. In general, as the opening 25 is made more fine, the contrast of the light and shade of the captured shadow tends to decrease, and as described above, the resin mask 20 is formed so that the light transmittance at a wavelength of 550nm is 40% or less, and therefore, the contrast of the light and shade of the shadow can be sufficiently increased. Therefore, when the openings 25 are made finer, even when a resin mask having more than 400ppi of fine openings 25 is formed, the opening pattern of the openings 25 can be accurately inspected.

The light transmittance of the resin mask 20 referred to in the present specification means the transmittance of light passing through a region of the resin mask 20 where the opening 25 is not formed, that is, an opening non-formation region.

The light transmittance of visible light can be measured by using a spectrophotometer (MPC-3100) manufactured by Shimadzu corporation.

In the vapor deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention, the reason why the light transmittance at a wavelength of 550nm of the resin mask 20 is set to 40% or less is that the wavelength of 550nm is a wavelength substantially at the center of visible light, and by setting the light transmittance at a wavelength of 550nm to 40% or less, the contrast of the shade of light and shade imaged by irradiation with visible light can be sufficiently improved. More specifically, since the spectrum of the incident light, i.e., the transmission light source, for example, the spectrum of the white light source includes a wavelength of 550nm, which is a wavelength at the approximate center of visible light, the contrast of the light and shade of the captured shadow can be sufficiently improved by setting the light transmittance at the wavelength of 550nm to 40% or less. Further, when the light transmittance at a wavelength of 550nm exceeds 40%, the contrast of the shade in visible light irradiation cannot be sufficiently increased, and the edge of the shade cannot be accurately grasped. The light transmittance at a wavelength of 550nm may be as described above as long as the condition is 40% or less, and is preferably 30% or less, and more preferably 10% or less. The lower limit is not particularly limited, but is 0%. In particular, when the light transmittance at a wavelength of 550nm is 10% or less, the contrast of the shade can be further sufficiently increased, and therefore, the inspection accuracy can be further improved.

Further, it is preferable that the resin mask has a light transmittance of 40% or less at a wavelength of 550nm and a maximum value of light transmittance of 55% or less at a wavelength of 450nm to 650nm, and particularly, the resin mask has a light transmittance of 40% or less at a wavelength of 550nm and a maximum value of light transmittance of 55% or less at a wavelength of 380nm to 780 nm. Further, it is more preferable to form the resin mask so that the maximum value of the light transmittance at a wavelength of 450 to 650nm, particularly 380 to 780nm is 40% or less. Further, it is more preferable that the resin mask has a light transmittance of 40% or less at a wavelength of 550nm and a maximum value of light transmittance in a visible light wavelength region of 55% or less, and it is particularly preferable that the resin mask has a light transmittance of 40% or less at a maximum value in a visible light wavelength region. Most preferably, the resin mask has a maximum light transmittance of 450 to 650nm of 10% or less, particularly a maximum light transmittance of 380 to 780nm of 10% or less, or a maximum light transmittance of 10% or less in the visible light wavelength region. The visible light wavelength region as used herein means a wavelength region defined by JIS-Z8120(2001), and has a short wavelength limit of 360 to 400nm and a long wavelength limit of 760 to 830 nm. By setting the light transmittance not only at a wavelength of 550nm but also at a wavelength of 380nm to 780nm or in the visible light wavelength range to the above-mentioned preferable range, variation in contrast of shade can be suppressed over a wide wavelength range, and the contrast of shade can be further improved.

The material of the resin mask 20 is not limited, and it is preferable to use a material that can form the openings 25 with high definition by laser processing or the like, has a small dimensional change rate and moisture absorption rate due to heat or time, and is lightweight. Examples of such a material include polyimide resins, polyamide resins, polyamideimide resins, polyester resins, polyethylene resins, polyvinyl alcohol resins, polypropylene resins, polycarbonate resins, polystyrene resins, polyacrylonitrile resins, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer resins, ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer resins, ethylene-methacrylic acid copolymer resins, polyvinyl chloride resins, polyvinylidene chloride resins, cellophane, ionomer resins, and the like. Among the above-mentioned exemplary materials, a resin material having a thermal expansion coefficient of 16 ppm/DEG C or less is preferable, a resin material having a moisture absorption rate of 1.0% or less is preferable, and a resin material having both of these conditions is particularly preferable. By forming a resin mask using the resin material, the dimensional accuracy of the opening 25 can be improved, and the dimensional change rate and moisture absorption rate due to heat or time can be reduced. Among the materials of the above-exemplified resin mask, a particularly preferable material is a polyimide resin.

The method of making the resin mask 20 made of the above exemplified materials or the like have a light transmittance of 40% or less at a wavelength of 550nm in the resin mask 20 is not particularly limited, and for example, the resin mask 20 can be made by the following configurations of the methods 1 to 3. As a result, the resin mask 20 does not have to be limited to the configuration described below, and the light transmittance of the resin mask 20 at a wavelength of 550nm may be 40% or less. According to the methods described below, as shown in fig. 8(a) to (c), visible light is not transmitted through the non-opening-formed region of the resin mask 20 or the transmission thereof can be suppressed, and the contrast of the shade can be sufficiently improved. On the other hand, as shown in fig. 8(d), in the conventional vapor deposition mask 100X, visible light easily passes through the non-opening region of the resin mask 20X, and the contrast of the shade cannot be sufficiently improved.

(method 1)

The 1 st method is a method of making a resin mask 20 made of the above-mentioned exemplified materials contain a coloring material component and making a light transmittance at a wavelength of 550nm 40% or less, as shown in fig. 8 (a). In other words, the resin mask 20 of the method 1 contains a coloring material component together with the above-described exemplified materials and the like. The coloring material component is not particularly limited, and any material and content may be appropriately selected so that the light transmittance of the resin mask 20 at a wavelength of 550nm is 40% or less. The coloring material component may be an organic material or an inorganic material, and a conventionally known dye, pigment, fine particles thereof, or the like can be appropriately selected and used. Further, as long as the light transmittance of the resin mask 20 at a wavelength of 550nm can be 40% or less, materials other than these may be used. The coloring material component may be used alone or in combination of two or more. The coloring material component contained in the resin mask 20 may be selected in consideration of a process temperature for forming the resin mask 20 or a resin plate described later. For example, when a polyimide resin is used as a material of the resin mask, a coloring material component having high heat resistance is preferably used. The shape of the coloring material component is not particularly limited, and a conventionally known shape, for example, a spherical, needle-like, or scaly particle may be used, and the size is not particularly limited. If the size of the coloring material component exceeds 1 μm, defects such as protrusions are likely to occur when the resin mask 20 contains the coloring material component. In view of this, the size of the coloring material component is preferably 1 μm or less. The lower limit of the size is not particularly limited, and is about 1 nm.

Examples of the coloring material component include carbon black, titanium oxide, titanium dioxide, black iron oxide, yellow iron oxide, red iron oxide, manganese dioxide, chromium oxide, chromium dioxide, silicon oxide, silicon dioxide, ultramarine, nigrosine, activated carbon, and the like. Further, as the content of the coloring material component increases, the strength of the resin mask tends to decrease, and the durability in use tends to decrease in a vapor deposition step of forming a vapor deposition pattern on a surface to be vapor deposited of a vapor deposition target using a vapor deposition mask, a cleaning step of cleaning the vapor deposition mask, or the like. Therefore, it is preferable to use a shape or a material having improved light-shielding properties as the coloring material component, and to reduce the content of the coloring material component. The coloring material component is preferably a black material component having small wavelength dependence. Among the above-exemplified coloring material components, carbon black, black iron oxide, titanium oxide, and titanium dioxide are particularly preferable coloring material components. The content of the coloring material component is preferably 20% by mass or less, more preferably 10% by mass or less, and particularly preferably 6% by mass or less, with respect to the total mass of the resin material of the resin mask. This is because when the content of the coloring material component exceeds 20 mass% with respect to the total mass of the resin materials of the resin mask 20, the dispersibility of the coloring material component in the resin mask 20 becomes uneven, the number of defects in the resin mask 20 containing the coloring material component increases, and the strength of the resin mask decreases.

The resin mask 20 of the method 1 may contain an arbitrary component in addition to the material and coloring material component of the resin mask. For example, a dispersant or the like may be optionally blended with components necessary for forming the resin mask of method 1. The same applies to the coloring material layer 40 of the resin mask 20 of method 2 described later.

The thickness of the resin mask 20 of the method 1 is not particularly limited, and in the case where the effect of suppressing the shadow generation is to be further improved, the thickness of the resin mask 20 is preferably less than 10 μm. The preferable range of the lower limit is not particularly limited, and when the thickness of the resin mask 20 is less than 3 μm, defects such as pinholes are likely to occur, and the risk of deformation increases. In particular, the thickness of the resin mask 20 is 3 μm or more and less than 10 μm, preferably 4 μm or more and 8 μm or less, whereby the influence of the shadow can be more effectively prevented when forming a high-definition pattern exceeding 400 ppi. The resin mask 20 and the metal mask 10 described later may be bonded directly or via an adhesive layer, and when the resin mask 20 and the metal mask 10 are bonded via an adhesive layer, the total thickness of the resin mask 20 and the adhesive layer is preferably within the above-described preferred thickness range. The shadow is a phenomenon in which a part of the vapor deposition material discharged from the vapor deposition source collides with a slit of the metal mask or an inner wall surface of an opening of the resin mask and does not reach the vapor deposition target, thereby generating a non-vapor deposition portion having a thickness smaller than that of the target vapor deposition film.

(method 2)

The 2 nd method is a method of forming the coloring material layer 40 on the opening non-formation region of the resin mask 20 not in contact with the metal mask 10, thereby making the light transmittance of the resin mask 20 at a wavelength of 550nm 40% or less, as shown in fig. 8 (b). The coloring material layer 40 is a layer included in the resin mask 20. That is, the light transmittance of the laminate of the resin mask 20 and the coloring material layer 40 at a wavelength of 550nm may be 40% or less.

The coloring material component described in the above method 1 may be appropriately selected as a material of the coloring material layer as long as a layer containing the coloring material component is formed. The thickness of the coloring material layer 40 is not particularly limited, and the total thickness of the resin mask 20 and the coloring material layer 40 is preferably the thickness of the resin mask 20 described in the above method 1.

(method 3)

The 3 rd method is a method of increasing the thickness of the resin mask to make the light transmittance at 550nm 40% or less, as shown in fig. 8 (c).

The thickness of the resin mask 20 that can be made to have a light transmittance of 40% or less at a wavelength of 550nm by the method 3 can be appropriately set depending on the material of the resin mask, and is usually 30 μm or more.

As described above, in the case where the purpose is to suppress the generation of the shadow, the thickness of the resin mask is preferably less than 10 μm. Therefore, in the present invention, it is preferable to form the resin mask 20 having a light transmittance of 40% or less at a wavelength of 550nm by the above-described method 1 or the above-described method 2. In the resin mask 20 of method 2, there are inherent problems such as the colored material layer 40 peeling off from the resin mask 20, and the occurrence of a peeling sheet in the cleaning step of cleaning the vapor deposition mask 100 or in the stage of forming the openings 25 to obtain the resin mask 20 of method 2. According to the resin mask of the 1 st method in which the resin mask 20 contains a coloring material component, these problems do not exist, and it can be said that the method is preferable as compared with the resin mask 20 of the 2 nd method. The resin mask of method 3 is inherently problematic in that the time required to form the opening 25 is increased by increasing the thickness of the resin mask 20, or in that the energy required to form the opening 25 by laser processing or the like is increased and shadows are likely to be formed, and therefore the resin masks of methods 1 and 2 are preferable.

In addition, when the openings 25 are formed in the resin mask by laser processing or the like, the material of the resin mask often exists as impurities in the openings 25 or in the vicinity of the openings 25, and the resin mask 20 of the method 1 has a function of suppressing transmission of visible light by itself, that is, the impurities themselves caused by the material of the resin mask also have a function of suppressing transmission of visible light. Therefore, according to the resin mask 20 of the method 1, not only the edge portion of the opening 25 but also the foreign matter caused by the material of the resin mask can be accurately grasped by the shadow. Further, according to the resin mask 20 of the method 1 containing a coloring material component, the transmittance can be easily adjusted, and the resin mask 20 having a light transmittance of 40% or less at a wavelength of 550nm can be easily formed.

The resin mask 20 of the vapor deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment may be combined with the methods 1 to 3 described above. In addition, the resin mask 20 having a light transmittance of 40% or less at a wavelength of 550nm may be formed by combining various other methods.

As shown in fig. 8(a) to (c), according to the resin mask 20 having a light transmittance of 40% or less at a wavelength of 550nm, it is possible to prevent transmission of visible light or to suppress transmission of light through the non-opening region of the resin mask. Fig. 8(d) is a schematic cross-sectional view of a conventional vapor deposition mask showing a state of transmitting light through the openings 25 and the non-opening-formed regions when visible light is irradiated to the mask. For comparison, fig. 8(a) to (c) also schematically show the state of transmitted light passing through the opening 25 and the opening non-formation region.

In order to confirm the superiority of the resin mask having a light transmittance of 40% or less at a wavelength of 550nm, samples 1 to 10 of the resin mask shown in table 1 below were prepared, and the shade was checked for brightness. Fig. 12 shows a shadow image. Fig. 12(a) corresponds to sample 1, fig. 12(b) corresponds to sample 2, fig. 12(c) corresponds to sample 4, fig. 12(d) corresponds to sample 5, and fig. 12(e) corresponds to sample 6. Sample 8 had a contrast equivalent to the shadow image shown in fig. 12 (c). The contrast of samples 3, 7, 9 and 10 was slightly lower than the shadow image shown in fig. 12 (c). The light transmittance at wavelengths of 550nm, 450 to 650nm and 380 to 780nm was measured by using a spectrophotometer (MPC-3100) manufactured by Shimadzu corporation, and an appearance defect inspection apparatus (manufactured by Takano Co., Ltd., image processing apparatus: MP72000) as a shadow imaging apparatus, and the transmitted light under a white light source was observed. The shape of the opening when viewed in a plan view is 50 μm square (50 μm. times.50 μm). The evaluation results in the table were based on the following criteria. In samples 9 and 10, red iron oxide was used as a coloring material component in addition to carbon black, and the transmittance at each wavelength was adjusted so as to be the transmittance shown in table 1 below.

(evaluation criteria of sample)

1 … cannot recognize the opening by shading.

2 … has a low contrast between the light and dark of the shadow of the opening, and thus the defect inspection of the opening cannot be sufficiently performed.

The contrast of the shade of the opening portion of 3 … may be such that the defect inspection of the opening portion is possible, and the possibility of missing the defect of the opening portion is extremely low.

The contrast of the shade of the opening portion 4 … is high, and there is little possibility that the defect of the opening portion will be overlooked.

The contrast of the shade of the opening portion of 5 … is extremely high, and the defect inspection accuracy of the opening portion is extremely high.

[ Table 1]

In the illustrated embodiment, the opening shape of the opening 25 is rectangular, but the opening shape is not particularly limited, and the opening shape of the opening 25 may be a rhombus or a polygon, or may be a shape having a curvature such as a circle or an ellipse. In addition, the rectangular or polygonal opening shape can increase the light emitting area as compared with an opening shape having a curvature such as a circle or an ellipse, and is preferable as the opening shape of the opening 25.

The cross-sectional shape of the openings 25 is not particularly limited, and the opposing end surfaces of the resin mask forming the openings 25 may be substantially parallel to each other, but as shown in fig. 1(b), the cross-sectional shape of the openings 25 is preferably a shape expanding toward the vapor deposition source. In other words, it is preferable to have a tapered surface that expands toward the metal mask 10. The taper angle may be appropriately set in consideration of the thickness of the resin mask 20, and the angle formed by the straight line connecting the lower bottom end of the opening of the resin mask and the upper bottom end of the opening of the same resin mask and the bottom surface of the resin mask, in other words, the angle formed by the inner wall surface of the opening 25 and the surface of the resin mask 20 on the side not in contact with the metal mask 10 (in the illustrated embodiment, the lower surface of the resin mask) in the thickness direction cross section of the inner wall surface of the opening 25 constituting the resin mask 20 is preferably in the range of 5 ° to 85 °, more preferably in the range of 15 ° to 75 °, and even more preferably in the range of 25 ° to 65 °. In particular, in this range, an angle smaller than the deposition angle of the deposition machine used is also preferable. In the illustrated embodiment, the end surface forming the opening 25 has a linear shape, but is not limited to this, and may have a curved shape protruding outward, that is, the entire shape of the opening 25 may be bowl-shaped.

(Metal mask)

As shown in fig. 1(b), a metal mask 10 is laminated on one surface of a resin mask 20. The metal mask 10 is made of metal and is provided with slits 15 extending in the longitudinal or transverse direction. The slit 15 is synonymous with the opening. The arrangement example of the slits is not particularly limited, and the slits extending in the longitudinal direction and the transverse direction may be arranged in a plurality of rows in the longitudinal direction and the transverse direction, the slits extending in the longitudinal direction may be arranged in a plurality of rows in the transverse direction, and the slits extending in the transverse direction may be arranged in a plurality of rows in the longitudinal direction. In addition, only 1 row may be arranged in the longitudinal direction or the lateral direction. The "longitudinal direction" and "lateral direction" referred to herein refer to the vertical direction and the horizontal direction in the drawings, and may be either the longitudinal direction or the width direction. For example, the vapor deposition mask, the resin mask, or the metal mask may have a longitudinal direction or a width direction. In the present specification, a case where the vapor deposition mask is rectangular when viewed in plan view is described as an example, but other shapes such as a circle and a rhombus may be used. In this case, the longitudinal direction or the radial direction of the diagonal line, or any direction may be referred to as a "longitudinal direction", and a direction perpendicular to the "longitudinal direction" may be referred to as a "width direction" (also referred to as a "width direction").

The material of the metal mask 10 is not particularly limited, and conventionally known materials can be appropriately selected and used in the field of vapor deposition masks, and examples thereof include metal materials such as stainless steel, iron-nickel alloys, and aluminum alloys. Among them, invar alloy materials, which are iron-nickel alloys, are less deformed by heat and therefore can be suitably used.

In addition, when the vapor deposition mask 100 according to one embodiment is used to perform vapor deposition on a surface to be vapor deposited of a vapor deposition target, a magnet or the like is disposed behind the vapor deposition target, and when it is necessary to magnetically attract the vapor deposition mask 100 in front of the vapor deposition target, the metal mask 10 is preferably formed of a magnetic material. Examples of the magnetic metal mask 10 include iron-nickel alloy, pure iron, carbon steel, tungsten (W) steel, chromium (Cr) steel, cobalt (Co) steel, KS steel which is an alloy including cobalt-tungsten-chromium-carbon iron, MK steel containing iron-nickel-aluminum as a main component, NKS steel in which cobalt-titanium is added to MK steel, Cu-Ni-Co steel, aluminum (Al) -iron (Fe) alloy, and the like. In the case where the material itself forming the metal mask 10 is not a magnetic material, the metal mask 10 may be provided with magnetism by dispersing the powder of the magnetic material in the material.

The thickness of the metal mask 10 is not particularly limited, and is preferably 100 μm or less, more preferably 50 μm or less, and particularly preferably 35 μm or less, in order to more effectively prevent the occurrence of a shadow. Further, when the thickness is thinner than 5 μm, the risk of breakage or deformation increases, and handling tends to be difficult.

In the embodiment shown in fig. 1(a), the aperture shape of the slit 15 is rectangular when viewed in plan, but the aperture shape is not particularly limited, and the aperture shape of the slit 15 may be any shape such as a trapezoidal shape or a circular shape. The same applies to the shape of the opening 25 of the resin mask 20.

The cross-sectional shape of the slit 15 formed in the metal mask 10 is not particularly limited, but is preferably a shape that expands toward the vapor deposition source as shown in fig. 1 (b). More specifically, the angle formed by the straight line connecting the lower bottom end of the slit 15 of the metal mask 10 and the upper bottom end of the slit 15 of the same metal mask 10 and the bottom surface of the metal mask 10, in other words, the angle formed by the inner wall surface of the slit 15 and the surface of the metal mask 10 on the side in contact with the resin mask 20 (the lower surface of the metal mask in the illustrated embodiment) in the thickness direction cross section of the inner wall surface of the slit 15 constituting the metal mask 10 is preferably in the range of 5 ° to 85 °, more preferably in the range of 15 ° to 80 °, and even more preferably in the range of 25 ° to 65 °. In particular, an angle smaller than the deposition angle of the deposition machine used is also preferable in this range.

The method of laminating the metal mask 10 on the resin mask is not particularly limited, and the resin mask 20 and the metal mask 10 may be bonded to each other with various adhesives or a resin mask having self-adhesiveness may be used. The resin mask 20 and the metal mask 10 may have the same size or different sizes. In consideration of the optional fixing to the frame, it is preferable that the size of the resin mask 20 is smaller than that of the metal mask 10, and the outer peripheral portion of the metal mask 10 is exposed, so that the metal mask 10 and the frame can be easily welded to each other.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the vapor deposition mask will be described with reference to embodiment (a) and embodiment (B) as examples. The vapor deposition mask 100 of the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described below, and any embodiment may be used as long as it satisfies the condition that the metal mask 10 in which the slit 15 is formed and the resin mask 20 in which the opening 25 corresponding to the pattern to be vapor deposited is formed at the position overlapping the slit 15 are stacked. For example, the slits 15 formed in the metal mask 10 may be stripe-shaped (not shown). Further, the slit 15 of the metal mask 10 may be provided at a position not overlapping the entire 1 screen. In either case, by forming the resin mask 20 so that the light transmittance at a wavelength of 550nm is 40% or less, it is possible to improve the contrast of the shade and the brightness and to accurately grasp the edge portion of the opening pattern of the opening 25 when checking whether or not the opening 25 of the resin mask 20 is a vapor deposition pattern to be formed on the vapor deposition surface of the vapor deposition object.

< vapor deposition mask of embodiment (A) >

As shown in fig. 2, a vapor deposition mask 100 according to embodiment (a) is a vapor deposition mask for simultaneously forming vapor deposition patterns for a plurality of screens, and is characterized in that a metal mask 10 having a plurality of slits 15 is stacked on one surface of a resin mask 20, openings 25 necessary for forming a plurality of screens are provided in the resin mask 20, and each slit 15 is provided at least at a position overlapping the entire screen 1. In the vapor deposition mask 100 according to embodiment (a), the light transmittance of the resin mask 20 at a wavelength of 550nm is also 40% or less.

The vapor deposition mask 100 according to embodiment (a) is a vapor deposition mask for simultaneously forming vapor deposition patterns for a plurality of screens, and vapor deposition patterns corresponding to a plurality of products can be simultaneously formed using one vapor deposition mask 100. The "openings" in the vapor deposition mask of embodiment (a) refer to a pattern to be produced using the vapor deposition mask 100 of embodiment (a), and when the vapor deposition mask is used for forming an organic layer of an organic EL display, for example, the shape of the openings 25 is the shape of the organic layer. In addition, the "1 screen" is constituted by an aggregate of the openings 25 corresponding to one product, and in the case where the one product is an organic EL display, an aggregate of organic layers necessary for forming one organic EL display, that is, an aggregate of the openings 25 of the organic layers becomes the "1 screen". In the vapor deposition mask 100 according to embodiment (a), the above-described "1 screen" is arranged on the resin mask 20 at predetermined intervals so as to form vapor deposition patterns of a plurality of screens at the same time. That is, the resin mask 20 is provided with openings 25 necessary for forming a plurality of screens.

The vapor deposition mask of embodiment (a) has the following features: a metal mask 10 having a plurality of slits 15 is provided on one surface of a resin mask, and each slit is provided at a position overlapping at least one entire 1-screen. In other words, between the openings 25 necessary for forming the screen 1, there is no metal line portion having the same length as the longitudinal length of the slit 15 and the same thickness as the metal mask 10 between the openings 25 adjacent in the lateral direction, and there is no metal line portion having the same length as the lateral length of the slit 15 and the same thickness as the metal mask 10 between the openings 25 adjacent in the longitudinal direction. Hereinafter, a metal line portion having the same length as the longitudinal length of the slit 15 and the same thickness as the metal mask 10 and a metal line portion having the same length as the lateral length of the slit 15 and the same thickness as the metal mask 10 may be collectively simply referred to as a metal line portion.

According to the vapor deposition mask 100 of embodiment (a), even when the size of the openings 25 and the pitch between the openings 25 constituting the 1-picture are made small in order to form the 1-picture, for example, to form a picture exceeding 400ppi, the size of the openings 25 and the pitch between the openings 25 are made extremely small, and thus, it is possible to prevent the interference caused by the metal wire portions and to form a high-definition image. In the case where the 1 screen is divided into a plurality of slits, in other words, in the case where a metal line portion having the same thickness as the metal mask 10 exists between the openings 25 constituting the 1 screen, the metal line portion existing between the openings 25 becomes an obstacle when forming a vapor deposition pattern on a vapor deposition object as the pitch between the openings 25 constituting the 1 screen becomes narrower, and it is difficult to form a high-definition vapor deposition pattern. In other words, when a metal line portion having the same thickness as that of the metal mask 10 exists between the openings 25 constituting the screen 1, the metal line portion causes a shadow when formed into a framed vapor deposition mask, and it is difficult to form a high-definition screen.

Next, an example of the opening 25 constituting the screen 1 will be described with reference to fig. 2 to 6. In the illustrated embodiment, the area enclosed by the broken line is a 1 screen. In the illustrated embodiment, for convenience of explanation, the aggregate of a small number of openings 25 is a 1-screen, but the present invention is not limited to this embodiment, and for example, when one opening 25 is 1 pixel, millions of openings 25 may be present on a 1-screen.

In the embodiment shown in fig. 2, a screen 1 is formed by an aggregate of openings 25 in which a plurality of openings 25 are provided in the vertical and horizontal directions. In the embodiment shown in fig. 3, a screen 1 is formed by an aggregate of openings 25 in which a plurality of openings 25 are provided in the lateral direction. In the embodiment shown in fig. 4, the screen 1 is formed by an aggregate of openings 25 formed by providing a plurality of openings 25 in the vertical direction. In fig. 2 to 4, a slit 15 is provided at a position overlapping the entire screen 1.

As described above, the slit 15 may be provided at a position overlapping only the 1 screen, or may be provided at a position overlapping the entire two or more screens as shown in fig. 5(a) and (b). In fig. 5(a), in the resin mask 10 shown in fig. 2, a slit 15 is provided at a position overlapping with the entire two screens continuing in the lateral direction. In fig. 5(b), slits 15 are provided at positions overlapping the entire three vertically continuous screens.

Next, the pitch between the openings 25 constituting the screen 1 and the pitch between the screens will be described by taking the mode shown in fig. 2 as an example. The pitch between the openings 25 and the size of the openings 25 constituting the screen 1 are not particularly limited, and can be appropriately set according to the pattern to be produced by vapor deposition. For example, when a 400ppi high-definition vapor deposition pattern is formed, the horizontal pitch (P1) and vertical pitch (P2) of the adjacent openings 25 in the openings 25 constituting the 1 screen are about 60 μm. The size of the opening was 500. mu.m²～1000μm²Left and right. The one opening 25 is not limited to correspond to 1 pixel, and for example, a plurality of pixels may be arranged in a pixel array to form the one opening 25.

The horizontal pitch (P3) and vertical pitch (P4) between screens are also not particularly limited, and as shown in fig. 2, when one slit 15 is provided at a position overlapping the entire screen 1, a metal line portion exists between the screens. Therefore, when the vertical pitch (P4) and the horizontal pitch (P3) between the screens are smaller than or substantially equal to the vertical pitch (P2) and the horizontal pitch (P1) of the openings 25 provided in 1 screen, the metal line portions existing between the screens are easily disconnected. Therefore, in consideration of this point, the pitch between screens (P3, P4) is preferably wider than the pitch between openings 25 constituting 1 screen (P1, P2). The pitch between screens (P3, P4) is, for example, about 1mm to 100 mm. The pitch between screens means a pitch between adjacent openings on a screen 1 and another screen adjacent to the screen 1. This is also the same for the pitch of the openings 25 of the vapor deposition mask and the pitch between screens in embodiment (B) to be described later.

As shown in fig. 5, when one slit 15 is provided at a position overlapping with the entire two or more screens, there is no metal wire portion constituting the inner wall surface of the slit between the screens provided in the one slit 15. Therefore, in this case, the pitch between two or more screens provided at the position overlapping one slit 15 may be substantially the same as the pitch between the openings 25 constituting the screen 1.

< vapor deposition mask of embodiment (B) >

Next, the vapor deposition mask of embodiment (B) will be described. As shown in fig. 6, the vapor deposition mask according to embodiment (B) has the following features: a metal mask 10 having a slit (1 through hole 16) is laminated on one surface of a resin mask 20 having a plurality of openings 25 corresponding to a pattern to be formed by vapor deposition, and all of the plurality of openings 25 are provided at positions overlapping with one through hole provided in the metal mask 10.

The openings 25 in embodiment (B) are openings necessary for forming a vapor deposition pattern on a vapor deposition target, and openings unnecessary for forming a vapor deposition pattern on a vapor deposition target may be provided at positions not overlapping with one through hole 16. Fig. 6 is a front view of the vapor deposition mask showing an example of the vapor deposition mask according to embodiment (B) as viewed from the metal mask side.

In the vapor deposition mask 100 according to embodiment (B), the metal mask 10 having one through hole 16 is provided on the resin mask 20 having the plurality of openings 25, and all of the plurality of openings 25 are provided at positions overlapping with the one through hole 16. In the vapor deposition mask 100 of embodiment (B) having such a configuration, since there is no metal line portion between the openings 25, which is equal to or thicker than the thickness of the metal mask, a high-definition vapor deposition pattern can be formed in accordance with the size of the openings 25 provided in the resin mask 20 without being disturbed by the metal line portion, as described in the vapor deposition mask of embodiment (a).

Further, according to the vapor deposition mask of embodiment (B), since the thickness of the metal mask 10 is increased, the thickness of the metal mask 10 can be increased to sufficiently satisfy durability and operability, and high-definition vapor deposition patterns can be formed and durability and operability can be improved.

The resin mask 20 of the vapor deposition mask according to embodiment (B) is made of a resin, and as shown in fig. 6, a plurality of openings 25 corresponding to a pattern to be formed by vapor deposition are provided at positions overlapping with one through hole 16. The openings 25 correspond to a pattern to be formed by vapor deposition, and a vapor deposition pattern corresponding to the openings 25 is formed in the vapor deposition target by passing the vapor deposition material discharged from the vapor deposition source through the openings 25. In the illustrated embodiment, a plurality of rows of openings are arranged in the vertical and horizontal directions, but the openings may be arranged only in the vertical or horizontal direction. In the vapor deposition mask 100 according to embodiment (B), the light transmittance of the resin mask 20 at a wavelength of 550nm is also 40% or less.

The "1 screen" of the vapor deposition mask 100 according to embodiment (B) refers to an aggregate of the openings 25 corresponding to one product, and in the case where the one product is an organic EL display, an aggregate of organic layers necessary for forming the one organic EL display, that is, an aggregate of the openings 25 serving as the organic layer is a "1 screen". The vapor deposition mask according to embodiment (B) may be configured by only "1 screen", or the "1 screen" may be arranged in a plurality of screen amounts, and when the "1 screen" is arranged in a plurality of screen amounts, it is preferable that the openings 25 be provided at predetermined intervals per screen unit (see fig. 5 of the vapor deposition mask according to embodiment (a)). The mode of "1 screen" is not particularly limited, and for example, when one opening 25 is 1 pixel, the 1 screen may be configured by several million openings 25.

(Metal mask)

The metal mask 10 of the vapor deposition mask 100 according to embodiment (B) is made of metal and has one through hole 16. In the present invention, the one through hole 16 is disposed at a position overlapping with all the openings 25 when viewed from the front of the metal mask 10, in other words, at a position where all the openings 25 disposed in the resin mask 20 are visible.

The metal portion constituting the metal mask 10, that is, the portion other than the through-hole 16 may be provided along the outer edge of the vapor deposition mask 100 as shown in fig. 6, or the metal mask 10 may be smaller in size than the resin mask 20 to expose the outer peripheral portion of the resin mask 20 as shown in fig. 7. The size of the metal mask 10 may be larger than that of the resin mask 20, and a part of the metal portion may protrude outward in the lateral direction or outward in the longitudinal direction of the resin mask. In any case, the size of the through hole 16 is smaller than that of the resin mask 20.

The lateral width (W1) and the vertical width (W2) of the metal portion forming the wall surface of the through hole of the metal mask 10 shown in fig. 6 are not particularly limited, but the durability and the handling property tend to decrease as the widths of W1 and W2 become narrower. Therefore, W1 and W2 are preferably wide enough to satisfy durability and operability. An appropriate width can be appropriately set according to the thickness of the metal mask 10, but as an example of a preferable width, W1 and W2 are both about 1mm to 100mm as in the metal mask of embodiment (a).

In the vapor deposition mask of each embodiment described above, the openings 25 are regularly formed in the resin mask 20, but the openings 25 may be arranged so as to be shifted from each other in the lateral direction or the longitudinal direction (not shown) when viewed from the metal mask 10 side of the vapor deposition mask 100. That is, the openings 25 adjacent in the lateral direction may be arranged to be shifted in the vertical direction. With this arrangement, even when the resin mask 20 is thermally expanded, the expansion occurring in each place can be absorbed by the opening 25, and the expansion can be prevented from being accumulated and causing large deformation.

In the vapor deposition mask according to each of the above-described embodiments, grooves (not shown) extending in the longitudinal direction or the lateral direction of the resin mask 20 may be formed in the resin mask 20. When heat is applied during vapor deposition, the resin mask 20 may thermally expand, and thereby the size or position of the opening 25 may change, but the formation of the groove can absorb the expansion of the resin mask, and can prevent the entire resin mask 20 from expanding in a predetermined direction due to the accumulation of thermal expansion occurring at various locations of the resin mask, and thereby the size or position of the opening 25 may change. The position of the groove may be set to the opening 25 constituting the screen 1 or to a position overlapping the opening 25, but is preferably set between the screens. The grooves may be provided only on one surface of the resin mask, for example, on the surface on the side contacting the metal mask, or may be provided only on the surface on the side not contacting the metal mask. Or may be provided on both sides of the resin mask 20.

Further, a groove extending in the vertical direction between adjacent screens may be provided, or a groove extending in the horizontal direction between adjacent screens may be formed. In addition, grooves may be formed in a combination thereof.

The depth and width of the groove are not particularly limited, but when the depth of the groove is too deep or the width is too wide, the rigidity of the resin mask 20 tends to decrease, and thus it is necessary to set the depth and width in consideration of this point. The cross-sectional shape of the groove is not particularly limited, and may be arbitrarily selected in consideration of the processing method, for example, a U-shape or a V-shape. The same applies to the vapor deposition mask of embodiment (B).

Method for manufacturing vapor deposition mask

Hereinafter, a method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask according to an embodiment will be described by way of example. The vapor deposition mask 100 according to one embodiment can be obtained by the following method: a metal mask with a resin plate is prepared by laminating a metal mask 10 provided with slits 15 on one surface of a resin plate, and then the metal mask with the resin plate is irradiated with laser light from the metal mask 10 side through the slits 15 to form openings 25 corresponding to a pattern to be formed by vapor deposition on the resin plate.

As a method of forming a metal mask with a resin plate, a metal mask 10 provided with slits 15 is laminated on one surface of a resin plate. The resin plate may use the material described in the above resin mask 20. In the case of the resin mask according to the above method 1, the resin plate contains a coloring material component, and the transmittance of the resin plate to light having a wavelength of 550nm is 40% or less.

As a method of forming the metal mask 10 provided with the slit 15, a masking member such as a resist material is applied to the surface of the metal plate, and a predetermined portion is exposed and developed, thereby finally forming a resist pattern in which the slit 15 is left. As a resist material used as a shielding member, a material having good handling property and desired resolution is preferable. Next, the resist pattern is used as a resist mask, and etching is performed by an etching method. After the etching is completed, the resist pattern is cleaned and removed. Thereby obtaining the metal mask 10 provided with the slits 15. The etching for forming the slit 15 may be performed from one surface side of the metal plate or from both surfaces. In the case of forming the slit 15 in the metal plate by using a laminate in which the metal plate is provided with a resin plate, a shielding member is applied to the surface of the metal plate on the side not in contact with the resin plate, and the slit 15 is formed by etching from one side. In addition, in the case where the resin plate has etching resistance to the etching material of the metal plate, it is not necessary to shield the surface of the resin plate, but in the case where the resin plate has no etching resistance to the etching material of the metal plate, it is necessary to coat the surface of the resin plate with a shielding member. In addition, although the description has been given mainly on the resist material as the shielding member, a dry resist may be stacked and patterned similarly instead of applying the resist material.

In the above method, the resin plate constituting the metal mask with resin plate may be not only a plate-like resin but also a resin layer or a resin film formed by coating. That is, the resin plate may be prepared in advance, and when the metal mask with the resin plate is formed using the metal plate and the resin plate, a resin layer or a resin film which will eventually become the resin mask may be formed on the metal plate by a conventionally known coating method or the like. For example, in the case of forming the resin mask according to the above-described method 1, a resin plate for obtaining the resin mask 20 according to the above-described method 1 can be obtained by preparing a coating liquid for a resin plate in which the material, coloring material component, and optional components added as needed of the resin mask described above are dispersed or dissolved in an appropriate solvent, coating the coating liquid on a metal plate by a conventionally known coating method, and drying the coating liquid.

As a method for forming the openings 25, a vapor deposition mask 100 according to an embodiment of the metal mask 10 in which the slits 15 are provided in a stack on one surface of the resin mask 20 provided with the openings 25 corresponding to the pattern to be vapor deposited is obtained by penetrating the resin plate with the prepared metal mask having the resin plate by using a laser processing method, a precision press working, a photolithography working, or the like, and forming the openings 25 corresponding to the pattern to be vapor deposited on the resin plate. In addition, in order to easily form the high-definition opening 25, a laser processing method is preferably used for forming the opening 25.

In the case of the resin mask according to the above-described method 2, the coloring material layer 40 may be formed on the resin plate before the openings 25 are formed, and the openings 25 penetrating through the coloring material layer 40 and the resin plate may be formed, or the openings 25 penetrating through the resin plate may be formed, and after the resin mask 20 is obtained, the coloring material layer 40 may be formed on the opening non-formation regions of the resin mask 20.

Alternatively, a metal mask with a resin plate may be fixed to the frame at a stage before the opening 25 is formed in the resin plate. The completed vapor deposition mask is not fixed to the frame, but the metal mask with the resin plate fixed to the frame is provided with the openings from the rear, whereby the positional accuracy can be remarkably improved. When the completed vapor deposition mask 100 is fixed to the frame, the metal mask defining the opening is fixed to the frame while being stretched, and therefore, the accuracy of the opening position coordinates is lowered. The fixing method of the frame 60 and the vapor deposition mask with a resin plate is also not particularly limited, and spot welding by laser or the like, an adhesive, screw fastening, or other fixing methods can be used.

Frame-equipped vapor deposition mask

Next, a vapor deposition mask with a frame according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. As shown in fig. 9 and 10, a vapor deposition mask 200 with a frame according to an embodiment of the present invention is characterized in that a vapor deposition mask 100 is fixed to a frame 60, the vapor deposition mask 100 is formed by laminating a metal mask 10 having a slit 15 formed therein and a resin mask 20 having an opening 25 corresponding to a pattern to be produced by vapor deposition formed at a position overlapping the slit, and the resin mask 20 has a light transmittance of 40% or less at a wavelength of 550 nm. According to the framed vapor deposition mask 200 having such a feature, it is possible to accurately confirm whether or not the shape pattern of the opening formed in the resin mask 20 is normal even after the vapor deposition mask 100 is fixed to the frame 60 while satisfying both high definition and light weight.

The framed vapor deposition mask 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention may be a system in which one vapor deposition mask 100 is fixed to a frame 60, as shown in fig. 9, or a system in which a plurality of vapor deposition masks 100 are fixed to a frame 60, as shown in fig. 10.

(vapor deposition mask)

The vapor deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention described above can be used as the vapor deposition mask 100 constituting the framed vapor deposition mask 200, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted. The vapor deposition mask of one embodiment described herein also includes the vapor deposition masks (vapor deposition masks of embodiments (a) and (B)) of the preferred embodiments described above.

(frame)

The frame 60 is a substantially rectangular frame member and has a through hole for exposing the opening 25 of the resin mask 20 provided in the finally fixed vapor deposition mask 100 on the vapor deposition source side. The material of the frame is not particularly limited, and a metal material having high rigidity, for example, SUS, invar alloy material, ceramic material, or the like can be used. Among these, the metal frame and the metal mask of the vapor deposition mask are preferable because welding is easy and the influence of deformation or the like is small.

The thickness of the frame is not particularly limited, and is preferably about 10mm to 30mm in terms of rigidity and the like. The width between the inner peripheral end face of the opening of the frame and the outer peripheral end face of the frame is not particularly limited as long as the frame and the metal mask of the vapor deposition mask can be fixed, and for example, a width of about 10mm to 50mm can be exemplified.

As shown in fig. 11(a) to (c), a frame 60 in which a reinforcing frame 65 and the like are provided in the region of the through-hole may be used in a range that does not prevent the exposure of the opening 25 of the resin mask 20 constituting the vapor deposition mask 100. In other words, the opening of the frame 60 may be divided by a reinforcing frame or the like. By providing the reinforcing frame 65, the frame 60 and the vapor deposition mask 100 can be fixed by the reinforcing frame 65. Specifically, when a plurality of vapor deposition masks 100 described above are fixed in parallel in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction, the vapor deposition masks 100 may be fixed to the frame 60 at positions where the reinforcing frame and the vapor deposition masks overlap each other.

The method of fixing the frame 60 and the vapor deposition mask 100 is not particularly limited, and spot welding by laser or the like, an adhesive, screw fastening, or other methods may be used.

Vapor deposition mask precursor

Next, a vapor deposition mask precursor according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. A vapor deposition mask precursor (not shown) according to an embodiment of the present invention is used for obtaining a vapor deposition mask in which a metal mask 10 having slits 15 formed therein and a resin mask 20 having openings 25 formed at positions overlapping the slits and corresponding to a pattern to be produced by vapor deposition are laminated, and is characterized in that the metal mask having slits is laminated on one surface of a resin plate having a light transmittance of 40% or less for a light having a wavelength of 550 nm.

The vapor deposition mask precursor according to an embodiment of the present invention is common to the vapor deposition mask 100 according to the above-described embodiment, and a specific description thereof is omitted, except that the opening 25 is not provided in the resin plate. As a specific configuration of the vapor deposition mask precursor of an embodiment, a metal mask with a resin plate described in the above-described method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask can be given.

According to the vapor deposition mask precursor of the above-described embodiment, by forming the openings in the resin plate of the vapor deposition mask precursor, it is possible to obtain a vapor deposition mask that satisfies both high definition and light weight and that can accurately check whether or not the shape pattern formed in the openings of the resin mask is normal.

In the above description, the metal mask with the resin plate in which the metal mask having the slits is provided is laminated on one surface of the resin plate having the light transmittance of 550nm of 40% or less as the vapor deposition mask precursor, but the metal plate with the resin plate in which the metal plate for forming the metal mask is laminated on one surface of the resin plate having the light transmittance of 550nm of 40% or less may be used as the vapor deposition mask precursor. In this vapor deposition mask precursor, the vapor deposition mask of one embodiment described above can be obtained by forming slits in a metal plate of a metal plate with a resin plate and then forming openings in the resin plate so as to overlap the slits formed in the metal plate.

(method for manufacturing organic semiconductor device)

Next, a method for manufacturing an organic semiconductor device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. The method for manufacturing an organic semiconductor element according to one embodiment includes a step of forming a vapor deposition pattern on a vapor deposition object by using a vapor deposition mask with a frame to which the vapor deposition mask is fixed, and in the step of forming the vapor deposition pattern, the vapor deposition mask fixed to the frame is characterized in that a metal mask having a slit formed therein and a resin mask having an opening corresponding to a pattern to be formed by vapor deposition formed at a position overlapping the slit are laminated, and the resin mask has a light transmittance of 40% or less for a light having a wavelength of 550 nm.

The method for manufacturing an organic semiconductor element according to one embodiment, which includes a step of forming a vapor deposition pattern by a vapor deposition method using a frame-equipped vapor deposition mask, includes an electrode forming step of forming an electrode on a substrate, an organic layer forming step, a counter electrode forming step, a sealing layer forming step, and the like. For example, when a vapor deposition method using a framed vapor deposition mask is applied to each of the light-emitting layer forming steps for R, G, B colors in an organic EL device, vapor deposition patterns for the light-emitting layers of the respective colors are formed on a substrate. The method for manufacturing an organic semiconductor device according to an embodiment of the present invention is not limited to these steps, and can be applied to any step of manufacturing a conventionally known organic semiconductor device by a vapor deposition method.

The method for manufacturing an organic semiconductor element according to an embodiment of the present invention is characterized in that, in the step of forming the vapor deposition pattern, the framed vapor deposition mask in which the vapor deposition mask is fixed to the frame used is the framed vapor deposition mask 200 according to the embodiment of the present invention described above, and a detailed description thereof is omitted here. According to the method for manufacturing an organic semiconductor element using a framed vapor deposition mask, an organic semiconductor element having a high-definition pattern can be formed. Examples of the organic semiconductor element produced by the method for producing an organic semiconductor element according to one embodiment of the present invention include an organic layer, a light-emitting layer, and a cathode electrode of an organic EL element. In particular, the method for manufacturing an organic semiconductor device according to one embodiment of the present invention can be applied to manufacturing an R, G, B light-emitting layer of an organic EL device requiring high-definition pattern accuracy.

(inspection method of vapor deposition mask)

Next, a method for inspecting a vapor deposition mask according to an embodiment will be described. A method for inspecting a vapor deposition mask according to an embodiment is a method comprising: in the present invention, a vapor deposition mask in which a metal mask provided with slits and a resin mask provided with openings at positions overlapping the slits are laminated is irradiated with visible light, and appearance inspection of the openings provided in the resin mask is performed based on the contrast of a region through which visible light is transmitted or a region through which visible light is not transmitted or is difficult to transmit in the resin mask.

According to the inspection method of a vapor deposition mask of an embodiment, since the vapor deposition mask used in the inspection method is a vapor deposition mask including a resin mask having a light transmittance of 40% at a wavelength of 550nm, contrast of brightness of a shadow taken can be improved, and inspection accuracy of an opening provided in the resin mask can be improved. The vapor deposition mask according to the above-described embodiment can be used as a vapor deposition mask, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

The irradiation direction of the visible light is not particularly limited, and the visible light may be irradiated from the metal mask side of the vapor deposition mask or from the resin mask side of the vapor deposition mask. The visible light irradiation device is not limited, and any conventionally known device capable of irradiating visible light can be suitably selected and used. The visible light used in the inspection method for a vapor deposition mask according to one embodiment is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include light beams containing a component having a wavelength of 550nm such as white light.

As described above, as the best mode of the present invention, a vapor deposition mask including the resin mask 20 having a light transmittance of 40% or less at a wavelength of 550nm, a vapor deposition mask precursor for obtaining the vapor deposition mask, a method for manufacturing an organic semiconductor element using the vapor deposition mask, and a method for inspecting the vapor deposition mask have been described, but in the case of the resin mask 20 containing a coloring material component as described in the above method 1, or in the case of the resin mask 20 containing the coloring material layer 40 provided on the non-opening-formation region as described in the above method 2, the light transmittance at a given wavelength can be reduced as compared with a resin mask containing no coloring material component or a resin mask containing no coloring material layer. The reduction of the light transmittance is associated with the improvement of the inspection accuracy of the opening, and the inspection accuracy of the opening can be improved by the reduction of the light transmittance as compared with the conventional resin mask.

Therefore, the vapor deposition mask according to another embodiment is characterized in that the resin mask contains a coloring material component or a coloring material layer is provided on the resin mask without being limited by the transmittance of the resin mask to light having a wavelength of 550 nm. It is preferable to contain a coloring material component or a coloring material layer which can reduce the transmittance of light having a wavelength of 550 nm. Further, as the vapor deposition mask with a frame, the method for manufacturing an organic semiconductor element, and the method for inspecting a vapor deposition mask described above, a vapor deposition mask including a resin mask having the above-described features may be used. Further, the vapor deposition mask precursor can be used as a vapor deposition mask precursor having a resin mask having the above-described characteristics.

Claims

1. A vapor deposition mask is formed by laminating a metal mask having metal openings and a resin mask having resin openings corresponding to a pattern to be formed by vapor deposition at positions overlapping the metal openings,

wherein the resin mask has a transmittance of 40% or less for light having a wavelength of 550nm,

the thickness of the resin mask is 4 [ mu ] m or more and less than 8 [ mu ] m.

2. A vapor deposition mask is formed by laminating a metal mask having metal openings and a resin mask having resin openings corresponding to a pattern to be formed by vapor deposition at positions overlapping the metal openings,

the resin material constituting the resin mask has a moisture absorption rate of 1.0% or less.

3. A vapor deposition mask is formed by laminating a metal mask having metal openings and a resin mask having resin openings corresponding to a pattern to be formed by vapor deposition at positions overlapping the metal openings,

the resin material constituting the resin mask has a coefficient of thermal expansion of 16 ppm/DEG C or less.

4. A vapor deposition mask is formed by laminating a metal mask having metal openings and a resin mask having resin openings corresponding to a pattern to be formed by vapor deposition at positions overlapping the metal openings,

the resin material constituting the resin mask is any of polyimide resin, polyamide resin, polyamideimide resin, polyester resin, polyethylene resin, polyvinyl alcohol resin, polypropylene resin, polycarbonate resin, polystyrene resin, polyacrylonitrile resin, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer resin, ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer resin, ethylene-methacrylic acid copolymer resin, polyvinyl chloride resin, polyvinylidene chloride resin, and ionomer resin.

5. A vapor deposition mask is formed by laminating a metal mask having metal openings and a resin mask having resin openings corresponding to a pattern to be formed by vapor deposition at positions overlapping the metal openings,

the resin container has a plurality of resin openings.

6. A vapor deposition mask is formed by laminating a metal mask having metal openings and a resin mask having resin openings corresponding to a pattern to be formed by vapor deposition at positions overlapping the metal openings,

the cross-sectional shape of the resin opening is a shape that expands toward the metal mask.

7. The vapor deposition mask according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the resin mask contains a coloring material component.

8. The vapor deposition mask according to any one of claims 2 to 6, wherein the thickness of the resin mask is 3 μm or more and less than 10 μm.

9. A framed vapor deposition mask, wherein the vapor deposition mask according to any one of claims 1 to 8 is fixed to a frame.

10. A method for manufacturing an evaporation mask, comprising:

a step of forming a resin opening in a resin plate of a vapor deposition mask precursor,

the vapor deposition mask precursor is formed by laminating a resin plate before forming a resin opening and a metal mask having a metal opening,

the resin plate has a light transmittance of 40% or less at a wavelength of 550 nm.

11. The method of manufacturing a vapor deposition mask according to claim 10, comprising the steps of:

after the step of forming the resin opening, visible light is irradiated from one side of the resin plate on which the resin opening is formed, transmitted light of the visible light transmitted through the resin plate on which the resin opening is formed is photographed from the other side, and inspection of the resin opening formed in the resin plate is performed based on a shadow of the photographed transmitted light.

12. A method of manufacturing an organic semiconductor element, the method comprising:

a process for forming a vapor deposition pattern on a vapor deposition object by using the vapor deposition mask according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

13. A method for forming an evaporation pattern, the method comprising: a vapor deposition pattern is formed on a vapor deposition object by using the vapor deposition mask according to any one of claims 1 to 8.