Nanoimprinting method, and method for producing a droplet arrangement pattern

A nanoimprinting method, comprising:

• coating a first substrate with a plurality of droplets of resist material by the ink jet method;
• pressing a linear pattern of protrusions and recesses of a first mold onto a surface of the first substrate which is coated with the droplets, to spread the droplets on the first substrate, to form a resist film constituted by bonds among the spread plurality of droplets and to transfer the linear pattern of protrusions and recesses onto the resist film;
• coating a plurality of droplets of resist material at a standard amount onto a second substrate different from the first substrate;
• pressing a second mold having a pattern of protrusions and recesses, which is at least partially the same as the linear pattern of protrusions and recesses, against a surface of the second substrate which is coated with the droplets, to spread the droplets to a degree that the droplets contact each other;
• causing shapes of the spread droplets of the standard amount to approximate ellipses;
• measuring an arrangement of the ellipses;
• rearranging the arrangements of the measured ellipses such that the plurality of ellipses are closely packed;
• and
• obtaining a droplet arrangement pattern constituted by a plurality of lattice points that correspond to positions at which the plurality of droplets are to be arranged, by designating the centers of each of the rearranged plurality of ellipses as lattice points,
• the droplets being coated on the first substrate such that the spaces among droplets in an A direction substantially parallel to the direction of the lines of the linear pattern of protrusions and recesses are longer than the spaces among droplets in a B direction substantially perpendicular to the A direction within a line transfer region of the first substrate that faces the linear pattern of protrusions and recesses when the linear pattern of protrusions and recesses is pressed against the first substrate.