JP2009151062A - Plastic microstructure manufacturing method and plastic microstructure - Google Patents

Abstract

A plastics microstructure manufacturing method capable of easily manufacturing a plastics microstructure in which a metal thin film is adhered and fixed to a predetermined part of a structure having a special shape, and the plastic structure thereof Provide the body.
A transfer / transfer mold 15 having a fine concavo-convex pattern 13 and having a metal thin film 17 attached only to and near the convex portion 13a is prepared, and the mold is pressed against a heated plastic substrate 3. Was transferred to the plastic substrate, and the metal thin film 7 was transferred to the plastic substrate side.
[Selection] Figure 7

Description

The present invention relates to a plastic microstructure manufacturing method and a plastic microstructure for manufacturing a plastic microstructure that can be used, for example, as various optical elements such as a high-performance polarizer or a diffraction grating. Further, the present invention relates to a device that is devised so that a metal thin film that is closely attached and fixed to a predetermined part of a structure having a special shape can be easily provided.

A conventional microstructure manufacturing method will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a conventional microstructure manufacturing method in the order of steps. First, as shown in FIG. 8A, lithography is performed. As a result, the resist 103 is placed on the silicon (Si) substrate 101. Next, as shown in FIG. 8B, etching is performed. As a result, a groove 105 is formed at a location where the resist 103 is not installed. Next, vapor deposition is performed as shown in FIG. As a result, the metal thin film 107 is deposited on the resist 103 and on the bottom of the groove 105. Next, as shown in FIG. 8D, lift-off is executed. As a result, the resist 103 and the metal thin film 107 placed thereon are removed. Finally, as shown in FIG. 8D, a microstructure having a structure in which the metal thin film 107 is provided only at the bottom of the groove 105 of the silicon (Si) substrate 101 can be obtained. .

In the case of the above-described configuration, it is possible to obtain a fine structure having a configuration in which the metal thin film 107 is provided only on the bottom of the groove 105 of the silicon (Si) substrate 101. There is a problem that the adhesion to the bottom of the groove 105 is poor. This was particularly noticeable when the substrate was made of plastic. Further, when the substrate is made of plastic, there has been a problem that the surface of the plastic is eroded by a resist solution or developer containing an organic solvent or a resist stripping solution used at the time of lift-off.

In order to solve such problems, for example, a fine structure manufacturing method disclosed in Patent Document 1 has been proposed.
JP 2006-308668 A

The microstructure manufacturing method disclosed in Patent Document 1 will be described with reference to FIG. First, as shown in FIG. 9A, there is a plastic substrate 201, and a metal thin film 203 is installed on the plastic substrate 201. Next, as shown in FIG. 9B, a push-in process is executed. That is, a master disk 205 on which a fine pattern is engraved is prepared, and the metal thin film 203 is partially pushed into the plastic substrate 201 using this master disk 205. Next, as shown in FIG. 9C, the metal thin film 203 that has not been pushed in is removed. Through the above steps, a fine structure in which the metal thin film 203 is embedded in the plastic substrate 201 with a predetermined pattern can be obtained.

The conventional configuration has the following problems. First, in the pressing step shown in FIG. 9B, the metal thin film 203 may be cracked in order to deform the metal thin film 203 while the plastic substrate 201 is heated. This is due to the difference in the mechanical properties of the metal thin film 203 and the coefficient of thermal expansion between the metal thin film 203 and the plastic substrate 201. Another problem is that the work of removing the metal thin film 203 that has not been embedded from the state shown in FIG. 9B is troublesome. That is, this type of work is performed by mechanical processing using a cutting blade, but it has been extremely difficult to accurately remove the metal thin film 203 that has not been embedded.

The present invention has been made on the basis of these points, and the object of the present invention is to easily manufacture a plastic microstructure in which a metal thin film is closely attached and fixed to a predetermined portion of a structure having a special shape. Another object of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing a plastic microstructure and a plastic structure.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, a manufacturing method for a plastic microstructured structure according to claim 1 of the present invention provides a transfer / transfer mold having a fine concavo-convex pattern and a metal thin film attached only to a convex portion and the vicinity thereof. The transfer / transfer mold is pressed against a heated plastic substrate to transfer the fine concavo-convex pattern to the plastic substrate and to transfer the metal thin film to the plastic substrate side. It is. According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a plastic microstructure manufacturing method according to the first aspect, wherein the mold having the fine concavo-convex pattern is disposed opposite to a vacuum deposition source, The mold is inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the vacuum deposition source so that the concave portion of the fine uneven pattern is not deposited, and the transfer / transfer mold is obtained by vacuum deposition in that state. It is characterized by being. The plastic microstructure manufacturing method according to claim 3 is the plastic microstructure manufacturing method according to claim 2, wherein the mold faces the vacuum deposition source along the direction in which the most undeposited portions are obtained. -It is characterized by being arranged. A plastic microstructure manufacturing method according to claim 4 is the plastic microstructure manufacturing method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the mold is made of a material or surface having a hydrophobic surface. It is characterized by comprising a hydrophobically treated material. A plastic microstructure manufacturing method according to claim 5 is the plastic microstructure manufacturing method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the plastic substrate is made of a thermoplastic resin. It is a feature. According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a plastic microstructure comprising a plastic substrate having a fine concavo-convex pattern and a metal thin film placed in close contact with only the concave portion of the fine concavo-convex pattern. It is what.

As described above, the method for producing a plastic microstructure according to claim 1 of the present invention provides a transfer / transfer mold having a fine concavo-convex pattern and having a metal thin film attached only to the convex portion and the vicinity thereof. The transfer / transfer mold is pressed against a heated plastic substrate to transfer the fine concavo-convex pattern to the plastic substrate and to transfer the metal thin film to the plastic substrate side. It is possible to easily manufacture a plastic microstructured structure. According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a plastic microstructure manufacturing method according to the first aspect, wherein the mold having the fine concavo-convex pattern is disposed opposite to a vacuum deposition source, The mold is inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the vacuum deposition source so that the concave portion of the fine uneven pattern is not deposited, and the transfer / transfer mold is obtained by vacuum deposition in that state. Therefore, it is possible to easily obtain a transfer / transfer mold in which the metal thin film is attached only to the convex portion and the vicinity thereof. The plastic microstructure manufacturing method according to claim 3 is the plastic microstructure manufacturing method according to claim 2, wherein the mold faces the vacuum deposition source along the direction in which the most undeposited portions are obtained. -It is characterized by being arrange | positioned, Thereby, the said effect can be made more reliable. A plastic microstructure manufacturing method according to claim 4 is the plastic microstructure manufacturing method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the mold is made of a material or surface having a hydrophobic surface. Since it is comprised from the material which carried out the hydrophobic process, the said effect can be made more reliable also by it. The plastic microstructure manufacturing method according to claim 5 is the plastic microstructure manufacturing method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the plastic substrate is made of a thermoplastic resin. Also by this, the above effect can be made more reliable. According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a plastic microstructure comprising a plastic substrate having a fine concavo-convex pattern and a metal thin film placed in close contact with only the concave portion of the fine concavo-convex pattern. For example, it can be effectively used as various optical elements such as a high-functional polarizer or a diffraction grating.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. First, the plastic microstructure 1 to be finally obtained in the present embodiment has a configuration as shown in FIG. First, there is a plastic substrate 3, and grooves 5 constituting a fine pattern are formed on the surface of the plastic substrate 3. A metal thin film 7 is formed at the bottom of the groove 5.
Is installed in close contact.

Next, a method for manufacturing the plastic microstructure 1 will be described. First, as shown in FIG. 2, a vacuum vapor deposition process is performed. That is, there is a metal vapor deposition source 11, and a transfer / transfer mold 15 on which a fine pattern 13 is engraved is placed at a predetermined inclination angle (θ °). Thereby, vacuum vapor deposition is performed, and the metal thin film 17 is deposited on the fine pattern 13 side. This is shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 2B, the metal thin film 17 is deposited only on and near the convex portion 13a of the fine pattern 13, and the metal thin film 17 is not deposited on the bottom 13b of the fine pattern 13. is there.

As a material of the portion where the fine pattern 13 is engraved, a material in which the metal thin film 17 is easily transferred to the plastic substrate 3 side, that is, a material having low adhesion during vapor deposition is preferable. Specifically, a hydrophobic resin material or an inorganic material whose surface has been subjected to a peeling treatment, such as glass, silicon (Si), or metal, is preferable.

The transfer / transfer mold 15 is replicated by pattern transfer from a master mold such as silicon (Si) from the viewpoint of durability, and is excellent in high heat resistance, high strength, and surface hydrophobicity. A material is preferred. Specifically, an epoxy resin or a fluororesin can be considered.

The metal thin film 7 is not particularly limited as long as it can be vapor-deposited, but gold, aluminum, or the like, which has relatively low adhesion during vapor deposition, is preferable. However, inorganic materials such as non-metallic SiO 2 and SiN may be used as long as they can be vacuum deposited.

The material of the plastic substrate 5 is a thermoplastic resin capable of pattern transfer, which is a transparent resin such as PMMA (polymethyl methacrylate), PC (polycarbonate), PET (polyethylene terephthalate), cycloolefin resin. Etc. are preferred. Further, the plastic substrate 5 may be in the form of a sheet, a sheet, or a film as well as a plate. Moreover, as the thickness, about 1 micrometer-1 mm are assumed, for example. Further, the concept of the plastic substrate 5 includes those in which a resin film is applied on a silicon (Si) or glass substrate.

Examples of the fine pattern 13 include a periodic dot pattern shape as shown in FIG. 5, and a periodic line pattern shape as shown in FIG. Incidentally, the inclination angle (θ °) at the time of vacuum vapor deposition described above is set, and the vapor deposition direction and vapor deposition angle with respect to the pattern are set according to the period and shape of the fine pattern 13 to obtain an appropriate undeposited portion. Will do so. For example, in the case of the periodic dot pattern shown in FIG. 5, it is desirable to perform oblique vapor deposition in a direction along dots in a certain direction. In the case of the periodic line pattern shown in FIG. 6, it is desirable to perform oblique deposition from the direction indicated by the arrow in FIG. Of course, various patterns other than the above are assumed.

Next, as shown in FIG. 3, transfer / transfer is performed on the plastic substrate 3 using the transfer / transfer mold 15 deposited obliquely. That is, the plastic substrate 3 and the transfer / transfer mold 15 are heated to near the glass transition temperature of the resin, and when the resin becomes soft, the transfer / transfer mold 15 is pressed against the plastic substrate 3. And it cools to below glass transition temperature in the state which pressed down after progress for a fixed time. Then, as shown in FIG. 4, the transfer / transfer mold 15 is peeled off.

As a transfer / transfer method, the above-described heating press is preferable, and the temperature of the plastic substrate 3 prevents the metal film from cracking due to excessive thermal deformation, and the transfer property of the metal thin film 17. Therefore, it is desirable that the temperature is slightly lower than the glass transition temperature of the resin. By passing through the above steps, the transfer of the fine pattern and the transfer of the metal thin film 17 can be performed simultaneously to obtain the desired plastic microstructure 1. The transfer / transfer mold 15 can be used repeatedly.

Next, a more specific example will be described with reference to FIG. First, as shown in FIG. 7A, oblique deposition of gold is performed on the fine concavo-convex pattern 13 of the transfer / transfer mold 15. The fine concavo-convex pattern 13 is a line pattern having lines and spaces of 1 μm. The transfer / transfer mold 15 is an epoxy mold having a hydrophobic surface. In addition, the inclination angle (θ °) is set to 45 ° at least so that it is deposited only on the convex portion 13a of the fine concavo-convex pattern 13 and the vicinity thereof and not on the concave portion 13b. Yes. By performing vacuum vapor deposition in this state, as shown in FIG. 7B, a transfer / transfer mold 15 having the metal thin film 17 attached only to the convex portion 13a and the vicinity thereof can be obtained.

Next, the transfer / transfer mold 15 is heated to 130 ° C., while the plastic substrate 3 side is heated to 100 ° C., and the transfer / transfer mold 15 is pressed against the plastic substrate 3 with a pressure of 5 MPa. Thereby, the transfer of the fine concavo-convex pattern 13 to the plastic substrate 3 side and the transfer of the deposited gold metal thin film 17 to the plastic substrate 3 side are executed. This is shown in FIG. FIG. 7C shows a state after transfer / transfer. The transfer / transfer mold 15 after transfer / transfer is repeatedly used.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the following effects can be obtained. First, a plastic microstructure 1 having a desired configuration can be easily manufactured. Since the transfer / transfer mold 15 is pressed against the plastic substrate 1 to transfer the fine pattern and transfer the metal thin film 17, the adhesion of the metal thin film 17 to the plastic substrate 3 is also high. Further, since the metal thin film 17 is not deformed, no cracks are generated. Further, since there is no process for cutting and removing the unnecessary metal thin film 17, the operation is simple and the highly accurate plastic microstructure 1 can be obtained. Further, since the metal thin film 17 deposited on the transfer / transfer mold 15 is completely transferred to the plastic substrate 1 side, the transferred fine pattern can faithfully reproduce the pattern of the transfer / transfer mold 15.

The present invention is not limited to the one embodiment. For example, the fine pattern is not limited to the periodic dot pattern shown in FIG. 5 or the periodic line pattern shown in FIG. 6, and various patterns are assumed. Further, the inclination angle (θ °) at the time of vacuum deposition is not limited to 45 °, and use of various inclination angles is assumed. In addition, the illustrated configuration is merely an example.

The present invention relates to a plastic microstructure manufacturing method and a plastic microstructure, and in particular, an easy method can be provided in which a metal thin film is adhered and fixed to a predetermined portion of a structure having a special shape. For example, it is suitable for various optical elements such as high-performance polarizers or diffraction gratings, biochips, various sensors, and the like, and the production thereof.

It is a figure which shows one embodiment of this invention, and is a side view which shows the structure of a plastic microstructure. FIGS. 2A and 2B are views showing an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2A is a side view showing a process of vacuum deposition, and FIG. 2B is an enlarged view of a part of a transfer / transfer mold after vacuum deposition. FIG. 1 is a side view showing a state in which a transfer / transfer mold is pressed against a plastic substrate and transferred / transferred, showing an embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows one embodiment of this invention, and is a side view which shows the state after pressing the transcription | transfer / transfer mold against the plastic substrate and transferring / transferring. It is a figure which shows one embodiment of this invention, and is a top view which shows the structure of a fine uneven | corrugated pattern planarly. It is a figure which shows one embodiment of this invention, and is a top view which shows the structure of a fine uneven | corrugated pattern planarly. FIG. 7A is a perspective view showing a state of vacuum deposition, FIG. 7B is a perspective view showing a configuration of a transfer / transfer mold after vacuum deposition, and FIG. FIG. 7C is a perspective view showing a state after the transfer / transfer mold is pressed against the plastic substrate and transferred / transferred. FIG. 8A is a side view showing a lithography process, FIG. 8B is a side view showing an etching process, FIG. 8C is a side view showing a vacuum deposition process, and FIG. d) is a side view showing a lift-off process. FIG. 9A is a side view showing a state where a metal thin film is installed on a plastic substrate, FIG. 9B is a side view showing a pressing process by a master having a fine uneven pattern, and FIG. 9 (c) is a side view showing a process of removing an unnecessary metal thin film.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Plastic microstructure 3 Plastic substrate 5 Groove 7 Metal thin film 11 Vacuum deposition source 13 Fine pattern 13a Convex part 13b Concave part 15 Transfer / transfer mold 17 Metal thin film

Claims (6)

Prepare a transfer / transfer mold having a fine concavo-convex pattern and a metal thin film attached only to and near the convex portion, and press the transfer / transfer mold against a heated plastic substrate to place the fine concavo-convex pattern on the plastic A method for producing a plastic microstructure, wherein the metal thin film is transferred to the plastic substrate side while being transferred to the substrate. 2. The plastic microstructure manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein a mold having a fine concavo-convex pattern is disposed opposite to a vacuum deposition source, and at that time, the mold is evacuated so that a concave portion of the fine concavo-convex pattern is not deposited. A method for producing a plastic microstructure, wherein the transfer / transfer mold is obtained by inclining a predetermined angle with respect to a deposition source and performing vacuum deposition in that state. 3. The plastic microstructure manufacturing method according to claim 2, wherein the mold is disposed opposite to the vacuum deposition source along a direction in which a large number of undeposited portions are obtained according to a fine uneven pattern. A plastic microstructure manufacturing method. The plastic microstructure manufacturing method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the mold is made of a material having a hydrophobic surface or a material having a hydrophobic surface. Manufacturing method of fine structure. The plastic microstructure manufacturing method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the plastic substrate is made of a thermoplastic resin. A plastic microstructure comprising a plastic substrate having a fine concavo-convex pattern and a metal thin film placed in close contact with only the concave portion of the fine concavo-convex pattern.

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