Very large area patterning system for flexible substrates

A method for imaging a pattern from a flexible mask (14) to a flexible substrate (10), so that the mask and the substrate are scanned through the object and image field, respectively, of a projection lens (26) having a characteristic object field and a characteristic image field, where the object field is illuminated by an illumination system (18):

• characterized by
• (a) providing linear motion in a first dimension to flexible mask carrying means and flexible substrate carrying means by a translation stage subsystem (12);
• (b) providing rotational motion by the flexible mask carrying means to the flexible mask in a second dimension, orthogonal to the first dimension, such mask carrying means being mounted on said stage subsystem (12), to present the mask to the object field of the projection lens (26) and to the illumination means;
• (c) providing rotational motion by the substrate carrying means to the flexible substrate in the second dimension, such substrate carrying means being mounted on said stage subsystem (12), to present the substrate to the image field of the projection lens (26);
• and
• (d) providing synchronization by control means for rotational motion to said mask carrying means and equivalent motion to said substrate carrying means in the second dimension while providing synchronized motion in the first dimension to said mask carrying means and simultaneously to said substrate carrying means, for a complete area scan of a panel.

A method for imaging a pattern from a mask (14) to a substrate (10) by scanning the mask and the substrate through the object field and image field, respectively, of a projection lens (26) having a characteristic object field and a characteristic image field, where the object field is illuminated by an polygonal-shaped beam from an illumination system (18), to enable complementary overlapping scans,

• characterized by:
• (a) providing a master pattern imprinted on a flexible mask presented by the mask carrying means to the object field of the projection lens (26) and to the illumination means;
• (b) providing a flexible substrate presented by the substrate carrying means to the image field of the projection lens (26);
• (c) providing linear motion in a first one of the two dimensions to mask and substrate carrying means by a translation stage subsystem (12);
• and
• (d) providing synchronized rotational motion by the mask carrying means to the flexible mask and providing synchronized rotational motion by the substrate carrying means to the flexible substrate.

Apparatus for imaging a pattern from a flexible mask (14) to a flexible substrate (10), by scanning the flexible mask (14) and flexible substrate (10) so that the mask and the substrate are scanned through the object field and image field, respectively, of a projection lens (26) having a characteristic object field and a characteristic image field, where the object field is illuminated by a polygonal-shaped beam from an illumination system (18), to enable complementary overlapping scans,

• characterized by:
• (a) a translation stage subsystem (12) to provide linear motion in a first dimensions;
• (b) mask carrying means, carrying the flexible mask (14), and substrate carrying means, carrying the flexible substrate (10), to provide synchronized rotational motion to the mask and to the substrate in a second dimension, orthogonal to the first dimension, such mask carrying means and substrate carrying means being mounted on said stage subsystem (12), and to present the mask and the substrate to the object field and the image field, respectively, of the projection lens (26) and to the illumination means;
• (c) control means for controlling rotational and linear motion to said mask carrying means and to said substrate carrying means for a complete area scan of a panel.

Apparatus for patterning a flexible substrate (10), so that the substrate is scanned through the image field of an illumination system having a characteristic object field and a characteristic image field,

• characterized by:
• (a) a translation stage subsystem (12) to provide linear motion in a first dimension;
• (b) means to provide rotational motion to the substrate in a second dimension, orthogonal to the first dimension, carrying the flexible substrate (10), such substrate carrying means being mounted on said stage subsystem (12), to move the substrate through the image field of the illumination system;
• and
• (c) control means for controlling rotational motion to said substrate carrying means in the second dimension, while providing motion in the first dimension to said substrate carrying means, for a complete area scan of a panel.

Apparatus for patterning a substrate (10), so that the substrate is scanned through a processing device,

• characterized by:
• (a) a translation stage subsystem (12) to provide linear motion to the substrate (10) in a first dimensions;
• (b) substrate carrying means, to provide rotational motion to the substrate (10) in a second dimension, orthogonal to the first dimension, carrying the substrate (10), such substrate carrying means being mounted on said stage subsystem (12);
• (c) the substrate being flexible to bend over rotational support means in the substrate carrying means which rotates same substrate in the second dimension;
• and
• (d) control means for controlling rotational motion to said substrate carrying means in the second dimension, while providing motion in the first dimension to said substrate carrying means, for a complete area scan of a panel.

Apparatus for scanning a substrate, with respect to a processing device, for a composite scanning motion

• characterized by:
• (a) the substrate being sufficiently flexible to bend in at least a partial loop, for rotational travel in a first dimension;
• b) a translation stage including a moving stage platform with a footprint of a certain size, serving to provide lateral motion in a second dimension, orthogonal to the first dimension, within that footprint;
• (c) said substrate holder comprising loop support means, mounted on said stage platform, with its axis parallel to the travel of said stage platform;
• and
• (d) control means to provide a complete area scan by a composite linear motion and rotational motion;
• whereby the flexible substrate is supported, compressed by bending, for rotational motion in the primary dimension for presentation to the processing device, while contemporaneous lateral motion in the secondary dimension is provided by said stage, enabling processing of a substrate panel significantly larger than the footprint of said platform in at least the primary dimension.

A large-area, high-throughput, high-resolution, projection system for imaging a pattern from a flexible mask (14) to a flexible substrate (10), by rotating the flexible mask (14) and flexible substrate (10) in one dimension and linearly moving the mask and the substrate in an orthogonal dimension so that the mask and the substrate are scanned through the object field and image field, respectively, of a projection lens (26), where the object field is illuminated by an illumination system (18),

• characterized by:
• (a) a translation stage subsystem (12) to provide linear motion in a first one of the two dimensions;
• (b) mask carrying means, carrying the flexible mask (14), to provide rotational motion to the mask in a second one of the two dimensions, such mask carrying means being mounted on said translation stage subsystem (12), to present the mask to the object field of the projection lens (26) and to the illumination system (18), said mask carrying means being a drum which is optically transparent so that any portion of the mask which may fall in the object field of the projection lens can be illuminated from below;
• (c) substrate carrying means, to provide rotational motion to the substrate in a second one of the two dimensions, carrying the flexible substrate (10), such substrate carrying means being mounted on said translation stage subsystem (12), to move the substrate through the image field of projection lens (26);
• and
• (d) control means for providing and controlling rotational motion to said mask carrying means and for providing synchronized, equivalent motion to said substrate carrying means in the second dimension, while providing motion in the first dimension to said mask carrying means and simultaneously to said substrate carrying means, for a complete area scan of a panel.