JP2002371364A - Apparatus for forming a thin film on a three-dimensional hollow container and a method for forming a thin film using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Problem] To provide a thin film forming apparatus and a thin film forming method using the same, which can cope with thin film formation on various types of containers without making a major change to the apparatus. Aim. A film forming chamber has a cylindrical body having a cylindrical space capable of accommodating a container therein, a canopy installed at one open end of the cylindrical body, and an exhaust air installed at the other open end. It has a bottom lid with a mouth, a container holding part for holding a container in which a thin film is to be formed in a predetermined position in the film forming chamber, and an external electrode between the side wall of the cylindrical body and the container. Each is installed, and the internal electrode is installed so as to be located inside the container held by the container holding part through the bottom lid, and the external electrode and the container holding part are appropriately set to those suitable for the container in which the thin film is to be formed. Make it exchangeable.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a three-dimensional hollow container, for example, a plastic bottle, a plastic cup, a plastic tray, a paper container, a paper cup, a paper tray, and the like, and a chemical vapor deposition method (CV) on the surface of a hollow plastic molded product.
The present invention relates to a thin film forming apparatus for forming a thin film according to D) and a thin film forming method using the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, a functional thin film has been formed on the surface of a three-dimensional hollow container such as a plastic container, and the gas barrier property of the container has been improved.
Attempts have been made to improve water vapor barrier properties, surface wettability, and the like. As one method of forming these functional thin films, there is a method of forming a thin film on the surface of a container by a chemical reaction of a process gas by a plasma-assisted CVD method. As disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-53117, this method uses a hollow external electrode substantially similar to the outer shape of the container and an inner electrode substantially similar to the inner shape of the container. And a method of forming a thin film, as disclosed in JP-A-8-175528, in which both the external electrode and the internal electrode are arranged at a substantially constant distance from the surface of the container to form a thin film. Is the way. However, in these inventions, the electrodes had to be made according to the shape of the container, and could not be applied to containers of all shapes.

[0003]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and can be applied to containers of various shapes with minimal changes without making a major change to the apparatus. It is an object of the present invention to provide a thin film forming apparatus capable of forming a thin film and a thin film forming method using the same.

The present invention has been made to achieve the above object. According to the first aspect of the present invention, a film forming chamber has a cylindrical body having a cylindrical space capable of accommodating a container therein; It consists of a canopy installed at one open end of the cylindrical body and a bottom lid installed at the other open end and having an exhaust port. A container holding part for holding, an external electrode made of a conductive material is provided between the side wall of the cylindrical body and the container, and the internal electrode is located inside the container held by the container holding part through the bottom lid. And an external electrode and a container holding part, which can be appropriately replaced with ones suitable for a container in which a thin film is to be formed. is there.

[0005] Further, the invention according to claim 2 is based on claim 1.
In the apparatus for forming a thin film on a three-dimensional hollow container described in (1), a spacer made of an insulating material is inserted between the external electrode and the container so as to contact the external electrode.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus for forming a thin film on a three-dimensional hollow container according to the second aspect, the spacer made of an insulating material is made of plastic.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus for forming a thin film on a three-dimensional hollow container according to any one of the first to third aspects, the bottom lid is made of a conductive material. In addition, an insulating plate made of an insulator is interposed between the side wall of the cylindrical body and the bottom cover.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for forming a thin film on a three-dimensional hollow container according to any one of the first to fourth aspects. A container holding part made of an insulator for holding a container is provided in a film forming chamber.

Further, according to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus for forming a thin film on a three-dimensional hollow container according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, a gas discharge port is provided at a tip of the internal electrode. At least one hole with a diameter of 0.5 mm or less
It is characterized in that at least one is open.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus for forming a thin film on a three-dimensional hollow container according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, a gas discharge port is provided at a tip of the internal electrode. Characterized in that at least one elongated hole having a minor axis of 0.5 mm or less is opened.

Further, the invention according to claim 8 is characterized in that
This is a method of forming a thin film on the surface of a three-dimensional hollow container by a CVD method, and is installed at a cylindrical body having a cylindrical space capable of accommodating a container for forming a thin film therein, and at one open end of the cylindrical body. In a film formation chamber consisting of a canopy and a bottom lid installed at the other open end and having an exhaust port,
A container holding part selected so as to be compatible with the container in which the thin film is to be formed is installed, and the container is held in place by the container holding part, while the container is fitted between the side wall of the tubular body and the container. An external electrode made of the conductive material selected as described above is installed, and an internal electrode is installed inside the container. Thereafter, the inside of the film forming chamber including the inside of the container is exhausted through an exhaust port installed on the bottom lid. A vacuum is applied, and then a process gas is introduced into the container from the tip of the internal electrode inserted into the container through the bottom lid, and a high-frequency or microwave power is applied between the external electrode and the internal electrode to convert the process gas into a plasma. Thus, a thin film is formed on the surface of the container.

[0012]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, a thin film forming apparatus according to the present invention will be described.
A description will be given with reference to FIG. 1 showing an outline of a cross-sectional configuration according to an embodiment. In the thin film forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1, a film forming chamber has a cylindrical body 2 having a cylindrical space capable of accommodating a container 1 in which a thin film is to be formed, and a cylindrical body 2 having one open end. A container for holding a container 1 on which a thin film is to be formed in a predetermined position in a film forming chamber, comprising a canopy 3 to be installed and a bottom lid 6 having an exhaust port 5 installed at the other open end. An external electrode 4 made of a conductive material is provided between the side wall of the cylindrical body 2 and the container 1, and the internal electrode 7 is held by the container holding part 10 through the bottom lid 6 of the film forming chamber. The external electrode 4 and the container holding component 10 are appropriately exchangeable with a container suitable for the container 1 on which a thin film is to be formed.

One of the important features of this device is that the cylinder 2 has a cylindrical space enough to accommodate the container 1 in which a thin film is to be formed. By making the inside of the cylindrical body 2 cylindrical, there is an effect that the manufacturing of the cylindrical body 2 is facilitated and the manufacturing can be performed at low cost.
The cylindrical body 2 only needs to have a cylindrical inner space, and the outer shape is not particularly limited. Further, the material of the cylindrical body 2 is not particularly limited, but an insulating material such as glass and plastic is suitable.

The second important feature is that an external electrode 4 made of a conductive material is provided between the side wall of the cylindrical body 2 and the container 1, and is appropriately replaced with an electrode suitable for the container for forming a thin film. That is what we can do. In order to form a uniform thin film on the inner surface of the container 2, the external electrode 4 and the internal electrode 7 must be installed so as to face each other across the container 1, and the external electrode 4 has a length equal to the length of the container 1. It is desirable that the height is approximately equal to (height). That is, when an external electrode that is extremely long with respect to the length of the container is used, high-density plasma is generated in a portion without the container, and as a result, it is difficult to generate appropriate plasma inside the container. Therefore, in the thin film forming apparatus of the present invention, the external electrode 4 made of a conductive material is provided between the side wall of the cylindrical body 2 and the container 1, and the external electrode 4 is appropriately adjusted to the length corresponding to the length of the container 1. The interchangeability allows for the formation of a homogeneous thin film on various containers. Further, it is desirable that the external electrode 4 can be easily detached.

On the other hand, in the thin film forming apparatus according to the present invention, as shown in FIG. 2, an insulating material is provided between the external electrode 4 made of a conductive material and the container 1 so as to contact the external electrode 4. Can be inserted. By changing the spacer 8 according to the size of the container on which the thin film is to be formed, the same vacuum device can be used for containers having different sizes. In other words, when forming a film in a small-sized container, the space for forming a vacuum inside the vacuum chamber can be reduced by using a thick spacer to reduce the space inside the film-forming chamber, and the container is located at the center of the external electrode. Since it is arranged, it is preferable to make the thickness of the thin film uniform. Further, for example, even in a container having an elliptical cross section, a film having a uniform thickness can be formed by forming the outer side of the spacer into a circular shape so as to fit the external electrode and the inner side into an elliptical shape according to the container shape. Further, when the spacer is not used, the surface of the external electrode may be contaminated with a process gas or the like during repeated film formation, and the discharge efficiency may be reduced. Therefore, the use of the spacer can prevent the external electrode from being stained, and can form a stable film over a long period of time. As the material of the spacer, an insulating material which does not affect the discharge efficiency even if the surface is contaminated with ease of processing, particularly plastic is preferable. For the above reasons, it is preferable that this spacer is inserted so as to be in contact with the external electrode and that it can be easily detached.

The third feature is that the canopy 3 of the film forming chamber is
Means that a bottom lid 6 having an exhaust port 5 is provided on the opposite side. A vacuum pump (not shown) is provided through the exhaust port 5 to evacuate the inside of the film forming chamber. Further, the material of the bottom cover 6 is not particularly limited, but metal is preferable in terms of mechanical strength and the like. However, when a conductive material such as a metal is used, it is preferable to interpose an insulating plate 9 between the bottom cover 6 and the external electrode 4. Further, in order to arrange the container 1 at an appropriate position in the film forming chamber, a container holding part 10 made of an insulator 9 as shown in FIG.
Is desirably installed in a film forming chamber. Further, by integrating the container holding part 10 and the insulating plate 9 into one piece, the number of device parts can be reduced.

On the other hand, FIG. 3 shows an external electrode 4 and a container of the thin film forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1 so that a uniform thin film is formed in a container 31 having a different length (height) from the container 1 of FIG. The state of the device when the external electrode 34 and the container holding part 30 are replaced in place of the holding part 10 is shown. The external electrode 34 is easily detachable in response to a change in the length of the container.
By changing only two components of the container holding component 30, a uniform thin film can be formed on the container 31.

The thin film forming apparatus according to the present invention is configured as described above. A thin film forming method using this apparatus will be described below with reference to FIG.
This will be described with reference to FIG. First, a cylindrical body 2 having a cylindrical space capable of accommodating a container 1 in which a thin film is to be formed, a canopy 3 installed at one open end of the cylindrical body 2, and a canopy 3 at the other open end The container 1 is installed in a film forming chamber including a bottom cover 6 having an exhaust port 5 and selected and installed so as to be compatible with the container 1.
Is held at a predetermined position, an external electrode 4 made of a conductive material appropriately selected to fit the container is provided between the side wall of the cylindrical body 2 and the container 1, and an internal electrode is provided inside the container 1. 7, and thereafter, the inside of the film forming chamber including the inside of the container 1 is evacuated through the exhaust port 5 provided in the bottom cover 6, and then inserted into the inside of the container 1 through the bottom cover 6. Process gas from the tip of the internal electrode 7 to the container 1
Then, a high-frequency or microwave power is applied between the external electrode 4 and the internal electrode 7 and the process gas is turned into plasma to form a thin film on the inner surface of the container 1.

The process gas is supplied to the inside of the container 1 from the gas discharge port 11 at the tip of the internal electrode 7 which is a hollow tube. In this case, if the gas discharge port 11 at the tip is too large, the process gas is turned into plasma inside the internal electrode 7 and a chemical reaction proceeds. As a result, the thin film formed on the container 1 becomes thick near the gas discharge port 11. On the contrary, the thickness becomes thinner in a portion far from the gas discharge port 11. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 4, the gas discharge port 11 has at least one hole having a diameter of 0.5 mm or less or a minor diameter of 0.5 m or less.
It is desirable that the length of the hole be equal to or less than m.

[0020]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below. <Embodiment 1> A thin film forming apparatus as shown in FIG. 1, that is, a film forming chamber has a cylindrical body 2 having a cylindrical space capable of accommodating a container therein, and a cylindrical body 2 having one open end. A container for holding a container 1 on which a thin film is to be formed in a predetermined position in a film forming chamber, comprising a canopy 3 to be installed and a bottom lid 6 having an exhaust port 5 installed at the other open end. An external electrode 4 made of a conductive material is provided between the holding component 10 and the side wall of the cylindrical body 2 and the container 1,
The internal electrode 7 is installed so as to be located inside the container 1 held by the container holding part 10 through the bottom lid 6, and the external electrode 4 and the container holding part 10 are suitable for a container in which a thin film is to be formed. A silicon oxide thin film was formed on the inner surface of a container made of polyethylene terephthalate having a capacity of 500 ml and a length (height) of 20 cm using a thin film forming apparatus that can be appropriately replaced with a thin film forming apparatus.

The process gas used was a mixed gas of hexamethyldisiloxane and oxygen.
sccm and 500 sccm. The mixed gas is introduced into the container 1 placed at a predetermined position in the film forming chamber by the container holding part 10 through the internal electrode 7 having a gas discharge port 11 having a diameter of 0.5 mm at the tip.
A high frequency was applied at 6.5 Pa and an applied power of 200 watt for 15 seconds to form a film. A thin film of silicon oxide was formed inside the container 1 and the film thickness was almost uniform.

<Embodiment 2> Using a thin film forming apparatus as shown in FIG.
A silicon oxide thin film was formed on the inner surface of a 1 (31 cm long) inner surface. First, prior to the formation of the thin film, the external electrode and the container holding component previously set in the apparatus are connected to the external electrode 34 and the container holding component 30 that match the size and height of the container 31 on which the thin film is to be formed. Replaced. The process gas used was a mixed gas of hexamethyldisiloxane and oxygen, and the respective flow rates were 10 sccm and 500 sccm. This mixed gas is provided at the tip of the internal electrode 7,
The gas is supplied into the container 31 through the gas discharge port 11 as shown in FIG. 4A having a long hole with a short diameter of 0.5 mm, and a high frequency is applied for 15 seconds at a film forming pressure of 66.5 Pa and an applied power of 200 watt. Then, a film was formed. A thin film of silicon oxide was formed inside the container 31, and the film thickness was almost uniform.

[0023]

According to the present invention as described above, it is possible to cope with the formation of a thin film on various types of containers without significantly changing the apparatus. That is, by selecting and installing the external electrode and the container holding component in accordance with the container in which the thin film is to be formed, a uniform thin film can be formed in various containers. In addition, a spacer made of an insulating material is inserted between the external electrode and the container so as to be in contact with the external electrode according to the size of the container in which the thin film is to be formed, and a uniform thin film is efficiently formed. As well as preventing contamination of the external electrodes,
A stable film can be formed over a long period of time.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional configuration explanatory view of a thin film deposition apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional configuration explanatory view of a thin film forming apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional configuration explanatory view of a thin film forming apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory plan view of a gas discharge port.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Container 2 ... Cylindrical body 3 ... Top lid 4 ... External electrode 5 ... Exhaust port 6 ... Bottom cover 7 ... Internal electrode 8 ... Spacer 9 ... Insulation Plate 10: Container holding part 11: Gas discharge port 14: Process gas supply pipe 15: High frequency power supply

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor: Manabu Tsujino F-term (reference), 3-5-1, Taito, Taito-ku, Tokyo 3E033 AA02 AA07 AA08 AA10 BA10 BA13 EA10 3E060 BC04 BC08 DA20 3E062 AA09 AC02 JA07 JB24 JC01 4K030 AA06 AA09 AA14 BA44 CA07 CA15 CA16 EA05 FA01 FA03 KA05 KA08 KA11 KA15 KA17 KA30 KA46 LA24

Claims (8)

[Claims] An apparatus for forming a thin film on a surface of a three-dimensional hollow container by a CVD method, wherein a film forming chamber has a cylindrical body having a cylindrical space capable of accommodating the container therein, and one of the cylindrical bodies. It consists of a canopy installed at the open end and a bottom lid installed at the other open end and having an exhaust port,
In the film forming chamber, a container holding part for holding a container in which a thin film is to be formed in a predetermined position is provided, and an external electrode made of a conductive material is provided between a side wall of the cylindrical body and the container. Is installed so as to be located inside the container held by the container holding part through the bottom lid, and the external electrode and the container holding part can be appropriately replaced with ones suitable for the container in which the thin film is to be formed. An apparatus for forming a thin film on a three-dimensional hollow container. 2. A thin film deposition on a three-dimensional hollow container according to claim 1, wherein a spacer made of an insulating material is inserted between the external electrode and the container so as to contact the external electrode. apparatus. 3. The apparatus for forming a thin film on a three-dimensional hollow container according to claim 2, wherein the spacer made of an insulating material is plastic. 4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the bottom cover is made of a conductive material, and an insulating plate made of an insulator is interposed between the side wall of the cylinder and the bottom cover. 2. The apparatus for forming a thin film on a three-dimensional hollow container according to claim 1. 5. A container holding part comprising an insulator for holding a container is provided in a film forming chamber comprising a cylinder, a canopy and a bottom lid. 2. The apparatus for forming a thin film on a three-dimensional hollow container according to claim 1. 6. The method according to claim 1, wherein at least one hole having a diameter of 0.5 mm or less is formed as a gas discharge port at a tip of the internal electrode. Equipment for forming thin films on three-dimensional hollow containers. 7. The internal electrode according to claim 1, wherein at least one elongated hole having a minor axis of 0.5 mm or less is formed as a gas discharge port at a tip of the internal electrode.
Item 3. An apparatus for forming a thin film on a three-dimensional hollow container according to the above item. 8. A method for forming a thin film on the surface of a three-dimensional hollow container by a CVD method, comprising: a cylindrical body having a cylindrical space capable of accommodating a container in which a thin film is formed;
In a film forming chamber consisting of a canopy installed at one open end of the cylindrical body and a bottom lid installed at the other open end and having an exhaust port, a container for forming a thin film should be fitted. The container holding part selected by the above is installed, and the container is held in a predetermined position by the container holding part, and an external electrode made of a conductive material selected to fit the container is provided between the side wall of the cylindrical body and the container. At the same time, an internal electrode is installed inside the container, and thereafter, the inside of the film forming chamber including the inside of the container is evacuated through an exhaust port installed on the bottom cover, and then inserted into the inside of the container through the bottom cover. Process gas is introduced into the container from the tip of the internal electrode,
A method for forming a thin film on a three-dimensional hollow container, characterized in that a high frequency or microwave power is applied between an external electrode and an internal electrode, and a process gas is turned into plasma to form a thin film on the container surface.