The present invention relates to a transfer method and a transfer apparatus to transfer an uneven pattern to an object to which transfer is to be performed.
In recent years, there has been proposed an apparatus as shown in FIG. 1 of Patent document 1, for example, as an example of a transfer apparatus to transfer a micro uneven pattern to a magnetic recording media substrate. In such a transfer apparatus, in the first place, reference positions of a mold and a substrate having a transfer layer formed thereon are aligned with each other in a state in which the mold and the substrate are spaced apart from each other, and then the mold is pressed to the transfer layer formed at the substrate.
In the conventional transfer apparatus, however, an object to which transfer is to be performed and a mold are simultaneously supported by a conical mandrel only with the result that, when the mold is pressed to or released from the object, the mold and/or the object may be supported by a portion of the conical mandrel located at a position different than a predetermined position of the conical mandrel. Furthermore, if the mold and the object are bent to different degrees, for example, the positions of the mold and/or the object may vary due to such bending. As a result, transfer is performed in a state in which the reference positions of the mold and the object are misaligned with each other. Also, during a transfer process, the mold and/or the object may be damaged.
The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a transfer method and a transfer apparatus which prevent misalignment in reference positions of a mold having an uneven pattern formed thereon and an object to which transfer is to be performed, thereby achieving high-precision pattern transfer.
In accordance with a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a transfer method to press a first mold to a first surface of an object to which transfer is to be performed and to press a second mold to a second surface of the object, the transfer method including a first process of making the first mold supported by support means held by a first mold holding part, a second process of making the second mold supported by the support means held by a second mold holding part, a third process of making the first mold pressed to the first surface of the object supported by the support means, and a fourth process of making the second mold pressed to the second surface of the object.
Also, in accordance with a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a transfer method to press a first mold having an uneven pattern at the surface thereof to a first surface of an object to which transfer is to be performed and to press a second mold having an uneven pattern at the surface thereof to a second surface of the object, the transfer method including a first supporting process of making the first mold supported by support means, a first holding process of making a first mold holding part move in a first direction to make the first mold held by the first mold holding part, a first moving process of making the first mold holding part move in a second direction opposite to the first direction, a second supporting process of making the second mold supported by the support means, a second holding process of making the support means move in the first direction to make the second mold held by a second mold holding part, an object supporting process of supporting the object of the support means, a pressing process of making the first mold holding part move in the first direction to make the first mold and the second mold pressed to both surfaces of the object, a first releasing process of making the first mold holding part move in the second direction to make the first mold and the object released from each other, and a second releasing process of making the support means move in the second direction to make the second mold and the object released from each other.
Also, in accordance with a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a transfer method to make support means penetrate through holes formed at center positions of an object to which transfer is to be performed, a first mold and a second mold so that the object, the first mold and the second mold are aligned with each other, to press the first mold to a first surface of the object and to press the second mold to a second surface of the object, wherein the center position of the object is aligned with the support means after the center positions of the first mold and the second mold are aligned with the support means.
Also, in accordance with the present invention, there is provided a transfer apparatus to press a first mold to a first surface of an object to which transfer is to be performed and to press a second mold to a second surface of the object, the transfer apparatus including support means to support the object, the first mold and the second mold, first mold holding means to hold the first mold supported by the support means, second mold holding means to hold the second mold supported by the support means, and press drive means to make the first mold pressed to the first surface of the object supported by the support means and to make the second mold pressed to the second surface of the object.
A first mold having an uneven pattern formed thereon and a second mold having an uneven pattern formed thereon are fixed in a state in which reference positions of the first mold and the second mold are aligned with the center axis of a center pin. An object to which transfer is to be performed is supported by the center pin, and the first mold is moved toward the second mold in a state in which a reference position of the object is aligned with the center axis of the center pin so that the first mold is pressed to a first surface of the object and, at the same time, the second mold is pressed to a second surface of the object.
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be noted, however, that the scope of the present invention is not limited by the illustrated embodiments.
The imprint apparatus transfers a pattern to opposite sides of an object to which transfer is to be performed, specifically an object, such as a substrate 6, to which a pattern is to be transferred, using an upper mold 503a having an uneven pattern to be transferred and a lower mold 503b having an uneven pattern to be transferred. In this specification, an object to which a pattern is to be transferred is referred to as a substrate. The substrate includes transfer layers. An upper transfer layer 604a made of a transfer material which is cured when ultraviolet rays are irradiated thereto and a lower transfer layer 604b made of a transfer material which is cured when ultraviolet rays are irradiated thereto are formed at the opposite sides of the substrate 6. Meanwhile,
The imprint apparatus shown in
The upper mechanism portion includes an upper mold holding part 501a, an upper stage 505a, an upper UV irradiation unit 508a, an upper mold gripping part 509a and an upper mold gripping drive unit 510a.
As shown in
The upper UV irradiation unit 508a is disposed at the top of the upper stage 505a. The upper mold holding part 501a, which is made of a transparent material, is disposed at the bottom of the upper stage 505a. In addition, the upper mold gripping drive unit 510a is disposed at the periphery of the upper mold holding part 501a. The upper mold holding part 501a has a mold holding surface (in
The upper UV irradiation unit 508a projects ultraviolet rays to cure a transfer material to the upper transfer layer 604a of the substrate 6 via the opening 100a and the upper mold holding part 501a according to an ultraviolet irradiation signal UV provided from the controller 200.
The upper mold holding part 501a holds the upper mold 503a at the mold holding surface, for example, by vacuum lifting according to an upper mold holding signal MHU provided from the controller 200. Meanwhile, the upper mold 503a may be held by the mold holding surface using a mechanical method instead of vacuum lifting.
The upper mold holding drive unit 510a drives the upper mold gripping part 509a according to a mold gripping signal MQ provided from the controller 200 so that the edge of the upper mold 503a can be gripped by the upper mold gripping part 509a, which is formed in an L shape.
The lower mechanism portion of the imprint apparatus includes a center pin 30b, a lower mold holding part 501b, a lower stage 505b, a center pin support part 506b, a lower center pin drive unit 507b, a lower UV irradiation unit 508b, a lower mold gripping part 509b, a lower mold gripping drive unit 510b, a stage upward and downward drive unit 511 and ball screws 512.
As shown in
The stage upward and downward drive unit 511 rotates the ball screws 512 in a clockwise direction or in a counterclockwise direction according to a stage drive signal SG provided from the controller 200 to move the upper stage 505a upward or downward in a state in which the upper stage 505a is parallel to the lower stage 505b. That is, the upper mold holding part 501a moves away from the lower mold holding part 501b in the direction perpendicular to the mold holding surface of the lower mold holding part 501b by upward movement of the upper stage 505a. Upon downward movement of the upper stage 505a, on the other hand, the upper mold holding part 501a moves toward the lower mold holding part 501b.
The center pin support part 506b is disposed in the opening 100b of the lower stage 505b at the top of the lower stage 505b. Furthermore, the lower mold holding part 501b, which is made of a transparent material, is disposed at the top of the lower stage 505b. In addition, the lower mold gripping drive unit 510b is disposed at the periphery of the lower mold holding part 501b.
The lower mold holding part 501b has a mold holding surface (in
The lower mold holding part 501b holds the lower mold 503b at the mold holding surface, for example, by vacuum lifting according to a lower mold holding signal MHL provided from the controller 200. Meanwhile, the lower mold 503b may be held by the mold holding surface using a mechanical method instead of vacuum lifting.
The lower mold gripping drive unit 510b drives the lower mold gripping part 509b according to a mold gripping signal MQ provided from the controller 200 so that the edge of the lower mold 503b can be gripped by the lower mold gripping part 509b, which is formed in an L shape.
The lower UV irradiation unit 508b projects ultraviolet rays to cure a transfer material to the lower transfer layer 604b of the substrate 6 via the opening 100b and the lower mold holding part 501b according to an ultraviolet irradiation signal UV provided from the controller 200.
The center pin drive unit 507b moves the center pin 30b upward or downward in the direction perpendicular to the mold holding surface of the lower mold holding part 501b, i.e. in the center axial direction of the center pin 30b, according to a center pin movement signal CGL provided from the controller 200.
As shown in
Also, as shown in
In order to operate the imprint apparatus, the manipulation unit 201 receives various operation commands from a user and provides operation command signals indicating the respective operation commands to the controller 200. The controller 200 performs an operation process program corresponding to the operation command signals provided from the manipulation unit 301 to generate various control signals UV, CGU, CGL and MH to control the imprint apparatus.
Here, when the manipulation unit 201 receives an imprint execution command from a user, the controller 200 reads an imprint process program stored in the memory 202 and starts to execute the read imprint process program.
Hereinafter, an imprint transfer operation performed through the execution of the imprint process program will be described with reference to
Referring to
Subsequently, the controller 200 repeatedly determines whether the center pin 30b supports the upper mold 503a until the upper mold 503a is supported by the center pin 30b (Step S2). Here, a mold conveyance apparatus (not shown) mounts the upper mold 503a to the center pin 30b so that, as previously described, the center pin 30b extends through the center hole of the upper mold 503a. As a result, the upper mold 503a is supported by the first support part TB1 of the center pin 30b in a state in which a pattern surface of the upper mold 503a faces downward as shown in [State 2] of
When it is determined at Step S2 that the upper mold 503a is supported by the center pin 30b as shown in [State 2] of
Subsequently, the controller 200 determines whether the mold holding surface of the upper mold holding part 501a is in contact with the upper mold 503a (Step S4). When it is determined at Step S4 that the mold holding surface of the upper mold holding part 501a is not in contact with the upper mold 503a, the procedure returns to Step S3 and the controller 200 performs the above-described operations again. That is, the upper mold holding part 501a is moved downward until the mold holding surface MSa of the upper mold holding part 501a comes into contact with the upper mold 503a as shown in [State 3] of
When it is determined at Step S4 that the mold holding surface of the upper mold holding part 501a is in contact with the upper mold 503a as shown in [State 3] of
That is, as the result of the execution of Step S1 to Step S5, the upper mold 503a is held by the mold holding surface of the upper mold holding part 501a in a state in which the center position (the reference position) of the upper mold 503a is aligned with the center axis of the center pin 30b.
Subsequently, the controller 200 provides a stage drive signal SG to the stage upward and downward drive unit 511 so as to move the upper stage 505a upward by a predetermined distance (Step S6). As the result of the execution of Step S6, the upper mold holding part 501a is moved upward in the center axial direction of the center pin 30b as shown in [State 4] of
Subsequently, the controller 200 repeatedly determines whether the center pin 30b supports the lower mold 503b until the lower mold 503b is supported by the center pin 30b (Step S7). Here, the mold conveyance apparatus mounts the lower mold 503b to the center pin 30b so that, as previously described, the center pin 30b extends through the center hole of the lower mold 503b. As a result, the lower mold 503b is supported by the first support part TB1 of the center pin 30b in a state in which a pattern surface of the lower mold 503b faces upward as shown in [State 5] of
When it is determined at Step S7 that the lower mold 503b is supported by the center pin 30b as shown in [State 5] of
Subsequently, the controller 200 provides a mold holding signal MHL to the lower mold holding part 501b (Step S9). As the result of the execution of Step S9, the lower mold 503b is held by the mold holding surface MSb of the lower mold holding part 501b. Meanwhile, at Step S9, the controller 200 may provide a mold gripping signal MQ to the lower mold gripping drive unit 510b so that the edge of the lower mold 503b is gripped by the lower mold gripping part 509b.
That is, as the result of the execution of Step S7 to Step S9, the lower mold 503b is held by the mold holding surface of the lower mold holding part 501b in a state in which the center position (the reference position) of the lower mold 503b is aligned with the center axis of the center pin 30b.
Subsequently, the controller 200 repeatedly determines whether the substrate 6 is supported by the center pin 30b until the substrate 6 is supported by the center pin 30b (Step S10). Here, the mold conveyance apparatus (not shown) mounts the substrate 6 to the center pin 30b so that, as previously described, the center pin 30b extends through the center hole of the substrate 6. As a result, the substrate 6 is supported by the second support part TB2 of the center pin 30b as shown in [State 7] of
When it is determined at Step S10 that the substrate 6 is supported by the center pin 30b as shown in [State 7] of
Subsequently, the controller 200 determines whether the upper mold 503a is in contact with the substrate 6 (Step S12). When it is determined at Step S12 that the upper mold 503a is not in contact with the substrate 6, the procedure returns to Step S11 and the controller 200 performs the above-described operations again. That is, the upper mold holding part 501a is moved downward until the upper mold 503a comes into contact with the substrate 6 as shown in [State 8] of
When it is determined at Step S12 that the upper mold 503a is in contact with the substrate 6, the controller 200 performs a mold pressing operation so as to press the upper mold 503a and the lower mold 503b to the substrate 6 (Step S13). In order to perform the mold pressing operation, the controller 200 first provides a stage drive signal SG to the stage upward and downward drive unit 511 so as to move the upper stage 505a downward so that the upper mold 503a and the lower mold 503b are pressed to the substrate 6 at a predetermined pressing value PVAD. As the result of providing the stage drive signal SG for a predetermined time, opposite sides of the substrate 6 are pressed by the upper mold 503a and the lower mold 503b as shown in [State 9] of
After the execution of Step S13, the controller 200 provides an ultraviolet irradiation signal UV to the upper UV irradiation unit 508a and the lower UV irradiation unit 508b (Step S14). As the result of the execution of Step S14, the upper UV irradiation unit 508a projects ultraviolet rays to the upper transfer layer 604a of the substrate 6 so as to harden the upper transfer layer 604a and, at the same time, the lower UV irradiation unit 508b projects ultraviolet rays to the lower transfer layer 604b of the substrate 6 so as to harden the lower transfer layer 604b. Consequently, the upper transfer layer 604a and the lower transfer layer 604b are hardened with the result that the uneven patterns are settled on the surfaces of the upper transfer layer 604a and the lower transfer layer 604b.
Subsequently, the controller 200 performs a release operation to release the substrate 6 from the upper mold 503a and the lower mold 503b (Step S15). In order to perform the release operation, the controller 200 provides a stage drive signal SG to the stage upward and downward drive unit 511 so as to move the upper stage 505a upward by a predetermined distance. As a result, the upper mold 503a is released from the upper transfer layer 604a of the substrate 6 as shown in [State 10] of
Subsequently, the controller 200 determines whether an operation command signal to indicate termination of the operation has been provided from the manipulation unit 201 (Step S16). When it is determined at Step S16 that the operation command signal to indicate the termination of the operation has been provided from the manipulation unit 201, the controller 200 terminates the imprint process program. On the other hand, when it is determined at Step S16 that the operation command signal to indicate the termination of the operation has not been provided from the manipulation unit 201, the controller 200 waits until the substrate conveyance apparatus separates the substrate supported by the center pin 30b from the center pin 30b and then provides a center pin movement signal CGL to the center pin drive unit 507b so as to move the center pin 30b to a predetermined position to support the substrate 6 as shown in [State 6] of
In the imprint apparatus shown in
That is, in the imprint apparatus shown in
Here, the above imprint process may be applied to a process for manufacturing magnetic recording media, such as discrete track media and bit patterned media. Hereinafter, a method of manufacturing a magnetic disk including the above imprint process will be described with reference to
First, an upper mold 503a and a lower mold 503b, each having a predetermined uneven pattern formed at a base material made of a material, such as glass, transmitting ultraviolet rays, are manufactured. The uneven pattern is formed, for example, by forming a resist pattern on the base material using an electron beam lithography apparatus and performing a dry etching process using the resist pattern as a mask.
The finished upper mold 503a and the finished lower mold 503b are surface treated using a silane coupling agent to improve releasability. Meanwhile, the upper mold 503a and the lower mold 503b each may be used as an original disk, and an object to which a pattern is to be transferred, which is made of a material, such as glass reproduced using an imprint method, transmitting ultraviolet rays, may be used as a mold for transfer. In addition, an object to which a pattern is to be transferred, which is made of a material, such as glass reproduced using the imprint method from the reproduced disk manufactured using the above method, transmitting ultraviolet rays, may be used as a mold for transfer. Meanwhile, if the reproduced mold for transfer is used, the base material of the original disk and/or the reproduced disk may be made, for example, of a material, such as silicon or nickel (including alloys thereof) reproduced using galvanoplastics, which does not transmit ultraviolet rays.
Subsequently, a magnetic disk media substrate (hereinafter, referred to as a media substrate) 600 is manufactured. The media substrate 600 is manufactured, for example, by stacking a plurality of layers, including an upper transfer layer 604a and a lower transfer layer 604b, which will be described below, at one surface (the upper surface) and the other surface (the bottom surface) of a circular support substrate 601 made of specially processed chemically tempered glass, silicon wafer, or an aluminum substrate. That is, as shown in
Subsequently, uneven patterns formed at the upper mold 503a and the lower mold 503b are transferred to the upper transfer layer 604a and the lower transfer layer 604b formed at the media substrate 600 using the above imprint method. That is, the upper transfer 604a and the lower transfer layer 604b are formed at the media substrate 600 prepared through the above process using a spin coating method, and the upper mold 503a and the lower mold 503b are fixed in a state in which the reference positions of the upper mold 503a and the lower mold 503b are aligned with the center axis of the center pin 30b. Afterwards, the media substrate 600 is supported by the center pin 30b, and the upper mold 503a is moved toward the lower mold 503b in the center axial direction of the center pin 30b in a state in which the reference position of the media substrate 600 is aligned with the center axis of the center pin 30b so that the upper mold 503a is pressed to one side of the media substrate 600 and, at the same time, the lower mold 503b is pressed to the other side of the media substrate 600. Afterwards, ultraviolet rays from the upper UV irradiation unit 508a are irradiated to the upper transfer layer 604a of the media substrate 600 so as to harden the upper transfer layer 604a of the media substrate 600 and, at the same time, ultraviolet rays from the lower UV irradiation unit 508b are irradiated to the lower transfer layer 604b of the media substrate 600 so as to harden the lower transfer layer 604b of the media substrate 600. After the upper transfer layer 604a and the lower transfer layer 604b are hardened, the upper mold 503a and the lower mold 503b are released from the media substrate 600. Finally, the media substrate 600 is taken out. The sectional structure shown in
Subsequently, an etching process is performed with respect to both surfaces of the media substrate 600 having the structure as shown in
Subsequently, a transfer layer removal process using wet etching or dry etching is performed with respect to the opposite sides of the media substrate 600 in a state as shown in
Subsequently, an etching process using the upper metal layer 603a and the lower metal layer 603b as a mask is performed with respect to the media substrate 600 in a state as shown in
Subsequently, wet etching or dry etching is performed with respect to the opposite sides of the media substrate 600 in a state as shown in
Subsequently, as shown in
As described above, the processes of
Meanwhile, in
Also, in the above embodiment, the substrate 6, the upper mold 503a and the lower mold 503b are disposed in the imprint apparatus in a state in which the reference positions of the substrate 6, the upper mold 503a and the lower mold 503b are aligned with each other, and, as shown in
The center pin 30b shown in
Also, in the above embodiment, the tip end part of the center pin 30b is formed in a conical shape, and the substrate 6, the upper mold 503a and the lower mold 503b are supported by the center pin 30b in a state in which the center positions of the substrate 6, the upper mold 503a and the lower mold 503b are aligned with each other, to which, however, the present invention is not limited.
The center pin 30b shown in
The first pin tip end part PBS1 shown in
Meanwhile, the tip end parts of the center pin 30b may be configured to have a structure, as shown in
Meanwhile, in this embodiment, a description is given of the UV type imprint method and the UV type imprint apparatus, to which, however, the present invention is not limited. Other imprint methods, such as thermal imprint and energy ray (for example, light or X rays excluding UV) curable imprint, may be used. In the thermal imprint, it is possible to use a metal mold, such as a nickel mold, without using a transparent mold and, in addition, a member inserted as a transparent material which transmits UV rays to a resist may be replaced with a material, such as metal, which is not transparent.
Also, the upper layer part of the substrate 6 may be used as the transfer layer so long as the substrate 6 is made of a material, such as resin film, bulk resin, or low melting-point glass, which can transfer the uneven micro patterns formed at the molds. In this case, a transfer material may not be formed on the substrate 6 but a pattern may be directly transferred to the substrate 6. Also, the present invention may be used to manufacture various recording media, such as optical disks, in addition to a magnetic disk transfer.
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
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PCT/JP2008/071560 | 11/27/2008 | WO | 00 | 5/24/2011 |