WO2012140253A1

WO2012140253A1 - Method and device for thermally treating substrates

Info

Publication number: WO2012140253A1
Application number: PCT/EP2012/056903
Authority: WO
Inventors: Harald Gross; Volker Linss; Jörg NEIDHARDT
Original assignee: Von Ardenne Anlagentechnik Gmbh
Priority date: 2011-04-15
Filing date: 2012-04-16
Publication date: 2012-10-18
Also published as: DE102011007544A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for thermally treating substrates using an RTP process, to an RTP device, and to the use of such a method and such a device to change substrates by applying energy. The aim of the present invention is to find a method and a device by means of which complex thermally induced structures can be simultaneously produced on the substrate in a time-saving manner. Said aim is achieved by a method in which the substrate (6) is thermally treated in a locally defined manner, in that one or more sub-areas of the substrate (6) are exposed to the radiation of a radiation means (2) for a duration on an order of magnitude of one millisecond by a device containing means for the defined local variation of the application of energy to the substrate, and the application of energy to the substrate (6) is limited to sub-areas having a width less than 100 micrometers.

Description

Method and device for the thermal treatment of

Substrates The invention relates to a method for thermal

Treatment of substrates utilizing RTP ("Rapid Thermal Processing") process, RTP device, and the use of such a method and apparatus for

Change of substrates by means of energy input.

The change of surfaces, structures as well

Depth profiles of solid materials or of

Functional layers on substrates for their tempering typically take place by tempering or tempering

Processes. Annealing is the heating of the corresponding one

Material to a temperature below its

Melting temperature over a defined period of time and according to a defined temperature profile, i. with defined temperature increase and cooling rates. It can

In addition, even under the action of reaction gases, a conversion of the surfaces exposed to these gases take place.

For the thermal treatment of on substrates

deposited functional layers, the entire substrate is usually heated. These processes typically last from a few minutes to hours. Such

Standard processes are not suitable for such substrates or even complex layer sequences on substrates that change or are even destroyed when exposed to temperature, if only a specific functional layer is supposed to be changed by the effect of temperature.

Tempering processes are among others in the

Semiconductor production used, in which case there is often the demand, the surface or near-surface regions of the substrate to thermally

However, while doing so, for example, as little as possible to change doping profiles of the semiconductor.

For example, crystal defects due to a

Ion implantation be cured without changing the already existing doping profile.

Therefore, processes are used for such purposes, in which the temperature load can be kept relatively low: Typically, the so-called RTP process (Rapid Thermal Processing), in which

particularly high Temperaturanstiegs- or cooling rates can be achieved. For example, by using RTP techniques, implanted species are activated,

Silicon surfaces oxidized or amorphous silicon converted into polycrystalline silicon. In addition, RTP processes are characterized by adjustable low penetration depths of energy, so that e.g. only superficial areas or a coating can be influenced.

In order to achieve these high rates of temperature rise and cooling, RTP processes are commonly used

Halogen lamps and now also flash lamps used. It is with such radiant agents

in principle possible, the surfaces or adhering

Layers strong, e.g. several hundred to over a thousand degrees Celsius, to heat while the substrate only to a depth of a few microns to heat. Further lying in depth layers or areas of the substrate remain at room temperature. The prerequisite is that the material to be heated absorbs the light and thus a temperature increase is possible.

So far, however, the use of RTP processes has focused on treating substrates in a particularly uniform manner, ie keeping the process conditions as constant as possible across the entire substrate. there various tools were used. In the

Thus, for example, KR1020090056671A describes an arrangement of different heating lamps and of masks between these lamps and the substrate, which makes the radiation emitted by the lamps impinge particularly uniformly on the substrate.

In RTP-type processes and devices for the thermal treatment of substrates are so far corresponding

Radiation only for the irradiation of the whole

Surface of the substrate used. It is with these

Methods and devices according to the prior art not possible to anneal only defined portions of the surface, while others are not thermally acted upon.

For the thermal treatment of only partial areas of the

Surface were previously used lasers, which then

be performed according to the surface of the substrates, these methods are in turn used mainly in the photovoltaic industry. By the

Carrying the laser over the surface, however, a considerable amount of time is required, especially the local thermal treatment of more complex structures is not in this way with that for the production

required throughput to accomplish.

In general, however, to produce more complex

Structures on substrates, but where no local thermal treatment is necessary, photolithography methods and devices or the

Laser structuring used. In the case of photolithography processes, a photosensitive layer is deposited on the substrate, subsequently with the aid of a so-called photomask, ie a shadow mask, which has been produced by structuring a light-reflecting layer

Layer on a transparent base, exposed and developed. After the development of the exposed This photosensitive layer is then again for targeted treatment (such as structuring or

Implantation) of the underlying substrate and then removing the patterned photosensitive layer. Desired structures are thus always transferred to the substrate indirectly and using a sequence of different, sometimes very cost-intensive processes.

The object of the present invention is now to provide a method and a device for the thermal treatment of

To find substrates in which complex thermally induced structures can be generated simultaneously and time-saving on the substrate.

This object is achieved by a

Process for the thermal treatment of substrates with the features of claim 1, a device with the

Features of claim 13, a coating apparatus according to claim 24 and the uses of a

Device according to the invention for the thermal treatment of substrates according to claims 25, 26 and 27. The dependent claims related thereto

advantageous embodiments again.

The inventive method for the thermal treatment of substrates, wherein the term substrate in the

following both a solid material and a

structured and / or non-structured layer sequence is to be understood on a substrate, which may have both a flat surface as well as a purpose-built topology, uses an RTP ("Rapid Thermal Processing"), in which process a radiation means causes an energy input into a substrate and thus a surface temperature increase of the substrate with high Temperaturanstiegs- and cooling rates, which allows short exposure times of the substrate. The usual high performance of RTP processes

Radiation means move in the range of several ten kilowatts, which means high temperature rise rates of usually one hundred to several hundred Kelvin per

Second, the periods of exposure to radiation, termed exposure time, can be kept very low. To achieve the

surface temperature increase, as well as the low thermally induced feature sizes of less than 100 microns, exposure times on the order of one millisecond are required, ranging from 0.1 milliseconds and less to a few milliseconds.

The exposure time is determined by the desired

Penetration depth, the desired feature sizes and the thermal properties of the material of the substrate and optionally superficial coatings determined.

Penetration depth and structure width are determined by the heat conduction in the substrate and optionally heat transfer between layers of different materials, so that the exposure time must be small enough to limit the lateral and depth extent of the thermal treatment well during treatment and during cooling due to the Heat propagation in the substrate does not blur the structure depths and structure widths.

Based on the material characteristics is the required

Exposure time for the desired structure dimensions calculated or by simulation. In

Dependence on the structure of a layer system are e.g. with exposure times of 1ms structure widths of about 10pm to 50pm to achieve.

Since in these methods, the radiation source abrupt

can be turned off and only very limited

Substrate areas are heated, are afterwards Cooling rates of similar magnitude as the

Temperature rise rates possible. Usually, these cooling rates are slightly below the temperature rise rates at several hundred Kelvin per millisecond. They are of the type of energy input into the substrate and the

Heating the environment depends. The higher the

Temperature rise rates and the lower the

Total process time, the lower the environment will heat up and thus a high cooling rate

enable. In this case, according to an embodiment of the method, a power density of at least 1000 W / cm ^{2 has} proven to be advantageous.

The method according to the invention is not intended to be limited to the ranges indicated above, but it may also be based on a further development of the customary RTP processes and systems which lead to even higher powers

Exposure times and even higher temperature rise and cooling rates continue to be used.

According to the invention, the substrate is locally defined thermally treated and thus locally differentiated in its structure changed: Different areas on the

Substrate become a different one at the same time

Energy input suspended. In other words, for at least two partial surfaces of the substrate

Energy input density, i.e., the energy input per area, different. The locally defined thermal treatment, which can also be referred to as "microtempering", involves a prior definition of the necessary

Energy input for each position of the substrate and a transfer of this so-defined "energy input structure" in local process parameters.

The RTP device used to implement the RTP ("Rapid Thermal Processing") method of the present invention includes a Radiation means can be produced with the high radiation powers, a radiation medium opposite the substrate, and means for the defined local variation of the energy input into the substrate. These are like that

designed such that subregions of the substrate can be limited to less than 100 microns with energy input deviating from neighboring regions. Furthermore, the radiation means is designed such that

Exposure times of one millisecond and less

are feasible.

Depending on the use of this device, the local variation of the energy input into the substrate opposite the radiation medium can be achieved by appropriate localization

Variation of the power of the radiation medium itself or by using additional tools for focusing and / or to hide the radiation generated by the radiation means can be achieved.

In one embodiment, to achieve the power densities described above for the method, the RTP device has radiation means capable of producing a power density of 1000 W / cm ² and more during an exposure time. For example, by means of one or more flash lamps, the required high power densities are achieved with short switching times for the required low exposure times. With flashlamps exposure times are achievable, which are in areas to less than a tenth of a millisecond. The radiation required for the thermal treatment of the substrate can optionally be generated either only by the flash lamp or by a flashlamp in combination with others

Radiation bodies is used. Exposure times less than ten milliseconds, and in particular less than a millisecond, allow a very localized energy input because, as stated above, the heating of not desired areas of the substrate as well as the entire environment of the substrate of the process times dependent.

In one embodiment of the inventive solution, the device contains means for limiting the

Energy input into the substrate, which can limit this energy input in each case to defined areas in orders of magnitude from a few micrometers wide. This

basically allows the use of such

Device for a "structured" energy input, so that this device similar to the exposure devices in conventional photolithography method, the

topological structuring or masking of

Can be used, with the difference that the device according to the invention a "structuring" on the substrate by the local

thermal change of the surfaces, the internal structure of the substrate material or the composition of the

Substrate material and / or depth profiles in the substrate allows.

In a particular embodiment of the device according to the invention, this is made possible by virtue of the fact that a shadow mask, i.e. a partially transparent mask, can be positioned between the radiation means and the substrate, whose base consists of a material which is transparent to the radiation emitted by the radiation means. On this substrate side is a thin

radiation-reflecting layer has been applied and structured so that they are openings exactly to the

Contains positions at which the radiation emitted by the radiation means is to strike the substrate located behind the shadow mask. The openings can have minimum widths of a few tenths of a micron. This shadow mask contains the specified The "energy input structure" which the substrate should have after the thermal treatment with the method according to the invention is specifically designed, ie corresponding shadow masks are created for different uses of this device.

In a special method according to the invention, the specific shadow mask, which determines in which positions the substrate is to be locally thermally treated, is introduced between the radiation agent and the substrate to be treated. The radiation of the

Radiation means thus passes from the back of the

Shadow mask through the openings in the

radiation-reflecting layer on the substrate and only leads there to a local energy input and thus for example to a local annealing process. In places where there is no opening in the radiation-reflecting layer, the light is reflected back through the transparent base body of the shadow mask and thus does not lead to any heating of the surface of the shadow mask

Substrate, allowing a thermal treatment of this

Regions of the substrate is avoided. It can do that

Introduce the shadow mask before the thermal treatment or between different steps of the thermal treatment of the substrate. It is also possible to work successively with several masks in different sub-steps of the thermal treatment of the substrate.

In a special embodiment of the device according to the invention, a shadow mask is used for this purpose, which has a base body made of quartz glass and an aluminum-containing radiation-reflecting layer. For example, an aluminum layer with a thickness of approximately 100 nm is possible here. Other materials such as silver can also be used as the radiation-reflecting layer. In principle, as a basic body for such a shadow mask should be first material transparent to the radiation used and for the structural radiation-reflecting layer located on the base body a material which is ideally totally reflective for the radiation used is used.

In a further embodiment of the method according to the invention, the radiation means during its thermal treatment temporally and / or spatially its

Radiation intensity vary. Thus, with simple "energy input structures" to be generated, these can be achieved solely by means of this variation of the radiation intensity, or the variation of the radiation intensity can be combined with the use of a shadow mask, in order to obtain more complicated "energy input structures"

produce.

In another embodiment, the

Device according to the invention, the radiation means a plurality of individual radiation bodies. This allows a simple generation of radiation with locally variable intensities, if in this embodiment, each individual luminous body of the radiation means can be controlled independently.

In a frequently used embodiment of the method, divergent radiation is used. In this

Embodiment variant results in a variety of simple implementation options of radiation generation. This is particularly favorable if, as in this method, it must be taken into account that the emitted radiation is suitable for rapid heating of the substrate

Energy input must enable. The selection of a

certain wavelength range is necessary where the process can result in the use of radiation of any wavelength to damage the substrate material. This can be the case eg in the treatment of organic material his .

The embodiment of the RTP device which can be used for this purpose accordingly contains a divergently radiating one

Radiation means. Such a radiation means are relatively simple in construction, can illuminate larger areas if necessary and there is a wider choice of radiation means which can be used for the respective purpose: these radiation means can be non-continuous as well as continuous. In addition to radiating in the visible range radiation may possibly also in

non-visible area radiating radiation possible.

A possible special device according to the invention, which allows substrates with divergent radiation of a

thermally treated to defined wavelength range, contains for this purpose between the radiation means and substrate positioned at least one filter for suppressing

unwanted wavelength ranges. Especially for the treatment of organic substrate materials, a filter for UV radiation in the device according to the invention between the radiation means and the substrate is arranged for this purpose. In practice, for example, a regular float glass used in window construction can be used as a filter.

In a further embodiment of the invention

Method, the substrate and / or the radiation medium is moved during the thermal treatment. This provides another way to localize the energy input

influence, because by appropriate movements, the radiation generated by the radiation means more or less long time more or less intense at a

defined position are used for energy input.

For this purpose, a special embodiment of the

Device according to the invention Means for moving the Substrate and / or the radiation during the

Energy input into the substrate. These means are designed so that the movement of the substrate and / or the radiation means coordinated to the currently used

Radiation intensity can be done.

In a special embodiment of the invention

Method is the thermal treatment of the substrate in an inert gas atmosphere, i. in the presence of gases, with which the substrate material does not react even at high temperatures, is carried out in order to avoid a chemical change of the substrate material due to the influence of the environmental elements during the thermal treatment.

In yet another specific embodiment of the

The process of the invention finds the thermal

Treatment of the substrate in a reactive gas atmosphere, so that the substrate material during the thermal treatment with the reactive gas reacts and thereby the respective thermally treated areas of the substrate are locally chemically altered. Thus, e.g. the

Presence of oxygen during the process according to the invention to a local oxidation of the thermal

lead treated substrate material.

To create a defined atmosphere, either one

Inert gas atmosphere or a reactive gas atmosphere to achieve in the local thermal treatment of substrates, a particular embodiment of the device according to the invention comprises means for the controlled supply of gases into the device and for the controlled evacuation of gases from the device. In addition, the corresponding

Device according to the invention designed so that an uncontrolled ingress of gases from outside the device is not possible. The means for the controlled supply of gases can thereby gas lines with be controllable valves. For controlled evacuation, for example, a pump system can be used.

The method according to the invention and the RTP device used therefor can be used for various local purposes

differentiated modification of substrates by means of locally defined energy input. Specifically, the local changes in the substrate may be local

Resistance changes or local changes of the internal structure of the substrate or local change of

Implantation profiles or a reaction of defined

Partial areas of the substrate with gases from the atmosphere of the device or a local influence on the etching behavior. These properties are such substrate properties that are readily modifiable by energy input. Also combinations of these

Structuring measures are possible.

In principle, such a change of a substrate under the influence of temperature is possible, wherein the inventive RTP method and the RTP device allows a predetermined, i. planned due to functional reasons, "energy input structure" and thus a specified indicated by the effect of temperature structuring of a

Substrate to make.

As advantageous, the application of the previously

described RTP process with the various

Variants for the locally defined thermal treatment of one or more top layers of the

Substrate proved. The short exposure times and the ability to influence the lateral and the depth dimensions of the thermally induced structure make it possible to limit the structuring to individual layers.

Accordingly, it corresponds to an inventive

Use, by a local energy input the Resistor of a TCO layer (Transparent Conductive Oxide layer), which is deposited on a substrate, to locally change such that thereby TCO conductor tracks in

isolating TCO arise. For this purpose, it is first necessary to reduce the resistance of a cold-deposited TCO layer over the entire surface by energy input and then locally by another energy input according to a fixed "energy input structure", with all areas of the TCO layer are set, whose resistance is so high should, that they have insulating properties, greatly increase.

A layer to be thermally treated can be previously coated on the substrate by one of the usual methods, e.g. PVD, CVD or wet-chemically deposited. For energetic or plant optimization or utilization

synergetic effects associated with the

Coating process or to protect the coated substrate from environmental influences, it may be advantageous to use the RTP device described above with appropriate

Implement variants in a coating device to integrate.

Another use according to the invention is the local reaction of a substrate with gases from the atmosphere surrounding the substrate. In this case, a reaction takes place only at the positions of the substrate at which the local

Energy input to achieve the necessary

Reaction temperature leads. An appropriate one

The area of application for this is the local oxidation of the substrate to be treated in an oxidizing atmosphere. The inventive solution for a method and a

Device for local thermal treatment of

Substrates and their use will now be explained with reference to several application examples. Fig. 1 shows a variant of the

Device according to the invention in a schematic

Presentation. In an RTP chamber 1 is located as

Radiation means extending over the entire width of the RTP chamber 1 flash lamp 2 and a substrate 6, which also occupies the entire width of the RTP chamber 1 and is to receive a local energy input at previously defined positions 7.

This substrate can be inserted through a closable opening 9 in a side wall of the RTP chamber in this and through a further closable opening 9 'in the

opposite side wall of the RTP chamber again

be executed so that this RTP chamber part of a larger plant for coating and structuring of

Substrates may be in which the substrate of one

Prechamber, in which a pre-processing has taken place, is introduced into the RTP chamber according to the invention and can be further processed in a subsequent chamber after performing the method according to the invention. In this RTP chamber 1, a shadow mask 3 is positioned between the flash lamp 2 and the substrate 6, which consists of a base body 4 made of quartz glass, which is a

radiation-reflecting structured layer 5 from

Contains aluminum of a thickness of lOOnm, which has been applied on the substrate 4 on the base body. These

Shadow mask 3 can be turned away when not in use in the RTP device chamber 1 or can be removed from the RTP device chamber 1 via a closable opening 8 in the side wall. The shadow mask 3 contains by her

radiation-reflecting structured layer 5 on its base 4, the corresponding information about at which positions 7 of the substrate 6 in carrying out the corresponding method of energy input by the of the flash lamp 2 emitted radiation is completed.

Due to the divergent radiation of the flashlamp 2, the shadow mask 3 is ideally in contact with the substrate 6 or as close as possible to the latter, as otherwise it would lead to a broadening of the structures

Shadow mask 3 comes or the edge areas of

Structures of lower incident light intensity on the substrate 6 are exposed as central regions of the structures. This device and a corresponding method can now be used in a first application example to set a desired resistance distribution on a substrate 6, and thus to improve the current flow in large-area OLEDs or electrochromic coatings by local and gradual annealing of the corresponding layer, so that in the case of illumination or no switching

Brightness differences occur. In this case, large substrate surfaces in continuous systems are treatable, wherein the resistance structures by varying the power of the radiation means 2, the individual light elements or

Luminous areas can be controlled independently of each other, can be set when running alone or through the additional use of shadow masks 3 during processing in the system. In another application example, the

Inventive device and the invention

Method used to one at room temperature

deposited layer of a TCO, that is a so-called cold deposited TCO such as e.g. an aluminum-doped zinc oxide (ZnO: Al) on a substrate 6 by a local

Energy input using a shadow mask 3 locally to temper. This is the lowering of the sheet resistance and thus the increase in the electrical conductivity of cold-deposited aluminum-doped zinc oxide in annealed areas by up to an order of magnitude

Compared to non-tempered areas possible. In addition, a local energy input increases the transparency of the TCO at the desired positions 7. The use of the method according to the invention and / or the device according to the invention for local thermal

However, influencing TCO layers is not just about lowering the resistance of a uniform

applied TCOs limited to the annealed places. It is known (DE 10 2008 009 337 AI) that above a certain temperature, the resistance of the aluminum-doped zinc oxide (ZnO: Al) again increases significantly. For this purpose, first a cold TCO layer deposited in a pre-process on a substrate 6 over the entire surface, i. without the use of a shadow mask 3 or any other local variation of the power of the radiation means 2 and thus of the

Energy input, annealed in an RTP chamber 1 and thus their sheet resistance over the entire surface lowered.

Subsequently, the shadow mask 3 is brought into position in the RTP chamber 1 between the TCO layer containing substrate 6 and the radiation means 2 in position and the TCO layer again and with significantly higher performance of

Annealed radiation means, wherein in this step, the local energy input at each position 7 of the TCO layer is determined by the shadow mask 3. With the significantly "over-tempered" TCO areas can now larger

Differences in the conductivity and thus in the resistance of the TCO produce than by optimally tempered TCO compared to cold deposited. In the limiting case is thus determined by the shadow mask 3

"Energy input structure" the structuring of a

achievable insulating material within a conductive TCO layer. There remain transparent, conductive TCO tracks, which are limited by the insulating TCO Material of the thus treated TCO layer.

Application of the inventive method and / or the device according to the invention also in a further process of OLED production. If structured OLEDs are to be produced, according to the prior art, the transparent conductive material is deposited and then, at the locations where the material is not required, with the aid of an etching mask, which was previously used e.g. by means of a

photolithographic step, etched away. This leads to edges, which in the further

Interfere with the manufacturing process as they cause shadowing. Here too, in the application according to the invention, the electrical properties are instead changed locally by a local input of energy in a layer obtained in total.

The method according to the invention and / or the device according to the invention are also used for topological purposes

Structuring used. This is possible if the etching behavior of a substrate material or of the material of a layer which is located on the substrate 6 changes significantly as a result of the effect of temperature.

Also for the local crystallization of organic

Materials in which their conductivity by several

Magnitudes is increased, is the inventive

Method and / or the device according to the invention

used. In this case, by the additional

Using a UV filter between flash lamp 2 and the

Shadow mask 3 to protect the organics from damage.

The local oxidation of a silicon wafer represents a further field of application of the method according to the invention and of a corresponding device. For this purpose, the silicon substrate 6 is penetrated by a shadow mask 3, on which the desired structures are imaged Flash lamp 2 irradiated while it is in a strong oxidizing atmosphere. In addition to the simple

Using the resulting silicon oxide regions as insulating regions between two active silicon regions, the resulting silicon oxide structures can be used as a mask for the etching of the still uncovered silicon silicon regions of the wafer. This kind of

Of course, application also applies to the reactions of others caused by an energy input

Substrate materials or layer materials on substrates 6 in other reactive gas atmospheres transferable.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMBERS

1 RTP chamber

2 radiation, flash lamp

3 shadow mask

4 main body

5 radiation-reflective structured layer

6 substrate

7 Position of the local energy input

8 closable opening for insertion and removal of

shadow mask

9, 9 'closable openings for insertion and removal of the substrate

Claims

claims

1. A process for the thermal treatment of substrates (6), using an RTP process, in which a

Radiation means (2) allows an energy input into the substrate (6), characterized in that the substrate (6) is locally thermally treated, ie

different areas on the substrate (6) at the same time a different energy input are exposed by one or more portions of the substrate (6) during a period of the order of one

Millisecond the radiation of a radiation means (2) exposed and the energy input into the substrate (6) is limited to portions with a width of less than 100 microns.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that said portions are exposed by means of the radiation means (2) during an exposure time of a power density of 1000 W / cm ² and more.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized

characterized in that the thermal treatment of

Substrate (6) required radiation is generated by a flash lamp (2).

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the defined local thermal

Treatment by means of a specific shadow mask (3), which is introduced between the radiation means (2) and the substrate to be treated (6) and during the thermal treatment by the radiation means (2) emitted radiation at the points where it should not hit the underlying substrate (6).

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the radiation means (2) during the thermal treatment varies temporally and / or spatially its radiation intensity.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the substrate (6) with divergent

Radiation of a defined wavelength range is locally thermally treated.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the substrate (6) and / or the

Radiation means (2) are moved during the thermal treatment.

A method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the thermal treatment of the substrate (6) in an inert gas atmosphere, i. in the presence of gases, with which the substrate material even at high

Temperatures no reaction occurs, takes place.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the thermal treatment of the substrate (2) takes place in a reactive gas atmosphere, the

Substrate reacts during the thermal treatment with the reactive gas and thereby areas of the substrate (6) are chemically altered.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that by means of the thermal treatment, the resistance or the internal structure of the substrate (6) or an implantation profile is locally changed or defined portions of the substrate (6) with gases from the atmosphere of Device react or the etching behavior locally being affected.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the substrate (6) is coated and at least the top layer is locally defined thermally treated.

12. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that by means of the thermal treatment locally, the resistance of a TCO layer on a substrate (6) is changed such that initially the resistance of a cold-deposited TCO layer over the entire surface is reduced by energy input and then locally a further energy input is greatly increased to form TCO tracks in insulating TCO.

13. RTP device comprising a radiation means (2) and a radiation means (2) opposite

Contains substrate receiving means on which a substrate (6) can be fastened, characterized in that the

Device means for the defined local variation of the energy input into a substrate (6), with which the areas of different energy input to a

Width of less than 100 micrometers are limited, and that by means of a radiation means (2), an energy input over a period of the order of a millisecond is to be generated.

14. RTP device according to claim 13, characterized

characterized in that by means of the radiation means (2) during an exposure time a power density of 1000 W / cm ² and more is to be generated.

15. RTP device according to one of claims 13 or 14, characterized in that the radiation means (2) comprises a flashlamp.

16. RTP device according to one of claims 13 to 15, characterized in that between the radiation means (2) and the substrate (6) has a shadow mask (3)

can be positioned, whose base body (4) consists of a transparent material for the radiation emitted by the radiation (2) material and on the substrate side, a radiation-reflecting layer (5) is applied and structured so that they openings exactly to the

Contains positions (7) where the by the

Radiation (2) emitted radiation on the behind the shadow mask (3) located substrate (6) should meet.

17. RTP device according to claim 16, characterized

in that the shadow mask (3) has a base body (4) made of quartz glass and a radiation-reflecting,

structured layer (5).

18. RTP device according to one of claims 13 to 17, characterized in that the radiation means (2) is formed radiating with locally variable intensities.

19. RTP device according to one of claims 13 to 18, characterized in that the radiation means (2) contains a plurality of individual radiation bodies.

20. RTP device according to one of claims 13 to 19, characterized in that the radiation means is formed divergently radiating.

21. RTP device according to one of claims 13 to 20, characterized in that between the radiation means (2) and substrate (6) positioned a filter for

Suppressing unwanted wavelength ranges.

22. RTP device according to one of claims 13 to 21, characterized in that it comprises means for moving the

Substrate (6) and / or the radiation means (2) during the Energy input into the substrate (6).

23. RTP device according to one of claims 13 to 22, characterized in that it contains means for the controlled supply of gases into the device and evacuation of gases from the device.

24. Apparatus for coating substrates with a coating chamber in which a substrate (6) of a

Coating source is to be arranged opposite, characterized in that the coating device comprises an RTP device according to one of claims 13 to 23.

25. Use of an RTP device according to one of

Claims 13 to 23 for the local change of the resistance and / or the internal structure and / or a

Implantation profile of the substrate (6) and / or for

Reaction of defined subregions of the substrate (6) with gases from the atmosphere of the device and / or local influencing of the etching behavior of the substrate (6) by means of locally defined thermal treatment.

26. Use of an RTP device according to one of

Claims 13 to 23 for locally changing the resistance of a TCO layer on a substrate (6) by means of locally defined thermal treatment such that initially the resistance of a cold deposited TCO layer is reduced over the entire surface by energy input and then greatly increased locally by a further energy input so that TCO tracks are formed in insulating TCO.

27. Use of an RTP device according to one of

Claims 13 to 23 for the local oxidation of

treating substrate (6) in an oxidizing atmosphere by means of locally defined thermal treatment.