Carl Zeiss Smt Gmbh

Christian Kempter

Jan Horn

Severin Waldis

Matthias Orth

Benedikt Knauf

Roger Marc Bostock

Jian Deng

Sebastian Lani

Gerald Rothenhoefer

Ulrich Korten

Juergen Anic

Wolfgang Fallot-Burghardt

A piezoelectric positioning device () has at least one piezoelectric actuator () having a first connection contact () and a second connection contact (). A control device () with digital/analog converters () connected to the connection contacts () is used to control the at least one piezoelectric actuator (). In comparison with a coarse converter (), a fine converter () has a comparatively smaller voltage range and lower voltage levels, with the result that a high degree of positioning accuracy can be achieved.

Piezoelectric positioning device and positioning method by means of such a piezoelectric positioning device

An optical component comprises a mirror array having a multiplicity of mirror elements, which are each connected to at least one actuator for displacement, a multiplicity of signal lines for the signal-transmitting connection of the actuators to an external, global control/regulating device for predefining an absolute position of the individual mirror elements, and a multiplicity of local regulating devices for regulating the positioning of the mirror elements, wherein the regulating devices are in each case completely integrated into the component.

Optical component

A micromirror of a micromirror array in an illumination system of a microlithographic projection exposure apparatus can be tilted through a respective tilt angle about two tilt axes. The micromirror is assigned three actuators which can respectively be driven by control signals in order to tilt the micromirror about the two tilt axes. Two control variables are specified, each of which is assigned to one tilt axis and which are both assigned to unperturbed tilt angles. For any desired combinations of the two control variables, as a function of the two control variables, one of the three actuators is selected and its control signal is set to a constant value, in particular zero. The control signals are determined so that, when the control signals are applied to the other two actuators, the micromirror adopts the unperturbed tilt angles as a function of the two control variables.

Methods and devices for driving micromirrors

The disclosure relates to a method and an arrangement for actuating an element in a system for microlithography. According to an aspect in at least one degree of freedom an actuator force is exerted on the element via at least two actuator components. The actuator components are driven independently of one another for generating the actuator force. Driving is effected so that a thermal power introduced into the system on account of the generation of the actuator force by the actuator components deviates from a predefined constant value by not more than 20%.

Method and arrangement for actuating an element

A microlithographic projection exposure apparatus has a measuring device, by which a sequence of measurement values can be generated, and a processing unit for processing the measurement values. The processing unit has a processing chain which includes a plurality of digital signal processors. The first digital signal processor in the processing chain is connected to the measuring device to receive the sequence of measurement values. Each subsequent digital signal processor in the processing chain is connected to a respectively preceding digital signal processor in the processing chain. The digital signal processors are programmed so that each digital signal processor processes only a fraction of the measurement values and generates processing results therefrom, and forwards the remaining fraction of the measurement values to the respective next digital signal processor in the processing chain for processing.

Microlithographic projection exposure apparatus

An illumination system for a microlithographic projection exposure apparatus includes a mirror arranged in a multi-mirror array and capable of being tilted via at least one actuator. The illumination system also includes drive electronics, which include a coarse digital-to-analogue converter with a first resolution, and a fine digital-to-analogue converter with a second resolution, and an adder. The second resolution is higher than the first resolution. The adder can add output quantities that are output by the two digital-to-analogue converters to yield an overall quantity that is capable of being applied at least indirectly to the at least one actuator of the mirror.

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Wittislingen, Germany

Christian Kempter