ORGANIC ELECTRONIC DEVICE, ORGANIC ELECTRONIC DEVICE MANUFACTURING METHOD, ORGANIC ELECTRONIC DEVICE MANUFACTURING APPARATUS, SUBSTRATE PROCESSING SYSTEM, PROTECTION FILM STRUCTURE AND STORAGE MEDIUM WITH CONTROL PROGRAM STORED THEREIN

• US 20100243999A1
• Filed: 08/26/2008
• Published: 09/30/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
• Original Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
• Inventors: Ishikawa, Hiraku
• Application Number:
  US12/675,351
• Publication Number:
  US 20100243999A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 257/40
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/345 Silicon nitride
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/45523 Pulsed gas flow or change of composition over time
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 50/8445 multilayered coatings having a repetitive structure, e.g. having multiple organic-inorganic bilayers
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 71/00 Manufacture or treatment specially adapted for the organic devices covered by this subclass

Abstract

An organic element is protected by a protection film which has high sealing performance while relaxing a stress and does not change the characteristics of the organic element. In a substrate processing system Sys, a substrate processing apparatus 10, which includes a deposition apparatus PM1, a first microwave plasma processing apparatus PM3, and a second microwave plasma processing apparatus PM4, is arranged in a cluster structure, and an organic electronic device is manufactured by keeping a space where a substrate G moves from carry-in to carry-out in a desired depressurized state. An organic EL element is formed by the deposition apparatus PM1, butyne gas is plasmatized by microwave power by the first microwave plasma processing apparatus PM3, and an aCHx film 54 is formed adjacent to the organic EL element to cover the organic EL element. Then, silane gas and nitrogen gas are plasmatized by microwave power by the second microwave plasma processing apparatus PM4, and a SiNx film 55 is formed on the aCHx film 54.

Claims

1. An organic electronic device comprising:

an organic element formed on a target object; and

a protection film that covers the organic element,

wherein the protection film comprises;

a stress relaxing layer that is formed to be adjacent to the organic element and cover the organic element, and contains a carbon component and contains no nitrogen components; and

a sealing layer that is formed on the stress relaxing layer and contains a nitrogen component.

2. The organic electronic device of claim 1, wherein a close-contact layer formed of a coupling agent is interposed between the organic element and an exposed portion of the target object, and the stress relaxing layer.

3. The organic electronic device of claim 1, wherein the stress relaxing layer is formed of an amorphous hydrocarbon film.

4. The organic electronic device of claim 1, wherein the sealing layer is formed of a silicon nitride film.

5. The organic electronic device of claim 4, wherein the silicon nitride film comprises a first silicon nitride film and a second silicon nitride film obtained by further nitrifying the first silicon nitride film.

6. The organic electronic device of claim 5, wherein the second silicon nitride film is interposed between first silicon nitride films.

7. The organic electronic device of claim 5, wherein the first silicon nitride film and the second silicon nitride film are alternately stacked to have one layer each or two layers each.

8. The organic electronic device of claim 5, wherein a film thickness ratio of the second silicon nitride film to the first silicon nitride film is ½

to ⅓

.

9. The organic electronic device of claim 3, wherein a thickness of the amorphous hydrocarbon film is 500 to 3000 Å

.

10. The organic electronic device of claim 8, wherein a sum of a thickness of the first silicon nitride film and a thickness of the second silicon nitride film is less than or equal to 1000 Å

.

11. The organic electronic device of claim 1, wherein the organic element is an organic electroluminescence (EL) element in which a plurality of organic layers are consecutively formed.

12. A method of manufacturing an organic electronic device, the method comprising:

forming an organic element on a target object; and

stacking a stress relaxing layer to be adjacent to the organic element and cover the organic element, to serve as one layer included in a protection film that protects the organic element, wherein the stress relaxing layer contains a carbon component and contains no nitrogen components; and

stacking a sealing layer on the stress relaxing layer, to serve as another layer included in the protection film, wherein the sealing layer contains a nitrogen component.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein a close-contact layer formed of a coupling agent is formed on the organic element and an exposed portion of the target object, and to then the stress relaxing layer is stacked thereon.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein a film stacked as the stress relaxing layer is an amorphous hydrocarbon film formed using plasma generated by exciting a gas comprising a butyne gas by microwave power.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the amorphous hydrocarbon film is formed in a process condition where an internal pressure of a processing chamber of a first microwave plasma processing apparatus is 20 mTorr or less, microwave power supplied into the processing chamber is 5 kw/cm² or greater, and a temperature around the target object loaded within the processing chamber is 100°

C. or less.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein a film stacked as the sealing layer comprises a first silicon nitride film formed using plasma generated by exciting a gas comprising a silane gas and a nitrogen gas by microwave power.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the first silicon nitride film is formed in a process condition where an internal pressure of a processing chamber of a second microwave plasma processing apparatus is 10 mTorr or less, microwave power supplied into the processing chamber is 5 kw/cm² or greater, and a temperature around the target object loaded within the processing chamber is 100°

C. or less.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein during the formation of the first silicon nitride film, the temperature around the target object is set to be 70°

C. or less.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein the film stacked as the sealing layer comprises a second silicon nitride film that is formed by nitrifying the vicinity of a surface layer of the first silicon nitride film by the nitrogen gas when supply of the silane gas is paused, after forming the first silicon nitride film.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the formation of the first silicon nitride film and the formation of the second silicon nitride film by reformation of the first silicon nitride film are consecutively performed by repeating the pause of the supply of the silane gas and resumption of the supply of the silane gas.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein a film thickness ratio of the second silicon nitride film to the first silicon nitride film is controlled to be ½

to ⅓

by controlling the timings of the pause of the supply of the silane gas and the resumption of the supply of the silane gas.

22. The method of claim 13, wherein, before the close-contact layer is formed, the organic element and the exposed portion of the target object are cleaned using plasma generated by exciting an inert gas by microwave power.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the cleaning is performed in a process condition where an internal pressure of a processing chamber of a microwave plasma processing apparatus is 100 to 800 mTorr or less, microwave power supplied into the processing chamber is 4 to 6 kw/cm² or greater, and a temperature around the target object is 100°

C. or less.

24. The method of claim 19, wherein the amorphous hydrocarbon film and the first and second silicon nitride films are formed using a plasma processing apparatus comprising a radial line slot antenna (RLSA).

25. The method of claim 22, wherein the amorphous hydrocarbon film is formed consecutively in the processing chamber of the microwave plasma processing apparatus where the cleaning has been performed.

26. The method of claim 12, wherein a bias voltage is applied during at least one selected from the group consisting of a period of time when the stress relaxing layer is stacked and a period of time when the sealing layer is stacked.

35. A computer-readable recording medium having recorded thereon a control program that operates on a computer, wherein the computer controls a substrate processing system to manufacture an organic electronic device according to the method of claim 12.

27. An apparatus for manufacturing an organic electronic device, wherein the apparatus:

forms an organic element on a target object;

stacks a stress relaxing layer to be adjacent to the organic element and cover the organic element, to serve as one layer included in a protection film that covers the organic element, wherein the stress relaxing layer contains a carbon component and contains no nitrogen components; and

stacks a sealing layer on the stress relaxing layer, to serve as another layer included in the protection film, wherein the sealing layer contains a nitrogen component.

28. A substrate processing system in which a substrate processing apparatus comprising a deposition apparatus, a first microwave plasma processing apparatus, and a second microwave plasma processing apparatus is arranged in a cluster structure, and an organic electronic device is manufactured while maintaining a space where a target object moves from an area where the target object is carried in to an area where the target object is carried out in a desired depressurized state,

wherein the substrate processing system:

forms an organic element within a processing chamber of the deposition apparatus;

generates plasma by exciting a gas including a butyne gas by microwave power and forms an amorphous hydrocarbon film to be adjacent to the organic element and cover the organic element by using the plasma, within a processing chamber of the first microwave plasma processing apparatus; and

generates plasma by exciting a gas including a silane gas and a nitrogen gas by microwave power and forms a first silicon nitride film on the amorphous hydrocarbon film by using the plasma, within a processing chamber of the second microwave plasma processing apparatus.

29. The substrate processing system of claim 28, wherein the first microwave plasma processing apparatus and the second microwave plasma processing apparatus are plasma processing apparatuses each including an RLSA.

30. The substrate processing system of claim 28, wherein, after the organic element and an exposed portion of the target object are cleaned in the processing chamber of the first microwave plasma processing apparatus, the amorphous hydrocarbon film is consecutively formed within the same processing chamber.

31. The substrate processing system of claim 28, wherein:

the substrate processing system comprises a processing chamber in which a close-contact layer formed of a coupling agent is formed on the organic element and the exposed portion of the target object; and

after the organic element and the exposed portion of the target object are cleaned, the close-contact layer is formed in the processing chamber, and the amorphous hydrocarbon film is stacked in the first microwave plasma processing apparatus.

32. The substrate processing system of claim 28, wherein the organic element is an organic EL element in which a plurality of organic layers are consecutively formed in the processing chamber of the deposition apparatus.

33. A protection film structure for protecting an organic element formed on a target object, the protection film structure comprising:

a stress relaxing layer stacked adjacent to the organic element to cover the organic element, to serve as one layer included in the protection film, wherein the stress relaxing layer contains a carbon component and contains no nitrogen components; and

a sealing layer stacked on the stress relaxing layer, to serve as another layer included in the protection film, wherein the sealing layer contains a nitrogen component.

34. The protection film structure of claim 33, wherein a close-contact layer formed of a coupling agent is interposed between the organic element and an exposed portion of the target object, and the stress relaxing layer.