Carl Zeiss Smt Gmbh

Gundula Weiss

Manfred Maul

Markus Deguenther

Johannes Wangler

Damian Fiolka

Michael Patra

Michael Layh

Andras G Major

Toralf Gruner

Karl-Heinz Schuster

Michael Gerhard

Ingo Saenger

Jochen Hetzler

Thomas Korb

Olaf Dittmann

Severin Waldis

Ralf Scharnweber

Daniel Runde

Reinhard Voelkel

Kenneth Weible

Dieter Schmerek

Harald Volkenandt

Markus Degünther

Martin Vogt

Detlev Mueller

Frank Marianek

Jürgen Hartmaier

Florian Doll

Juergen Hartmaier

Otto Hahnemann

Detlev Müller

A microlithography projection exposure apparatus includes illumination optics configured to illuminate object field points of an object field in an object plane, and projection optics configured to image the object field onto an image field in an image plane. The illumination optics includes a multi-mirror array which includes a plurality of mirrors configured to adjust an intensity distribution in exit pupils associated with the object field points. The illumination optics also includes an optical system configured to produce, via an incoherent superposition of illumination rays, a temporal modification of a temporal stabilization of an illumination of the multi-mirror array. The optical system includes a mirror which includes a mirror surface. In addition, the optical system includes an actuator configured to produce a tilt of at least a portion of the mirror surface.

Microlithographic projection exposure apparatus having a multi-mirror array with temporal stabilisation

An optical system for a microlithographic projection exposure apparatus and a microlithographic exposure method are disclosed. In an embodiment an optical system for a microlithographic projection exposure apparatus includes at least one mirror arrangement having a plurality of mirror elements which are displaceable independently of each other for altering an angular distribution of the light reflected by the mirror arrangement. The optical system also includes at least one manipulator downstream of the mirror arrangement in the light propagation direction. The manipulator has a raster arrangement of manipulator elements so that light incident on the manipulator during operation of the optical system is influenced differently in its polarization state and/or in its intensity in dependence on the incidence location.

Optical system for a microlithographic projection exposure apparatus and microlithographic exposure method

A microlithographic projection exposure apparatus includes a projection light source. The apparatus also includes a heating light source for generating heating light which is at least partly absorbed by an optical element. An illumination optical unit directs the heating light onto the optical element such that the heating light has a predefined intensity distribution on an optical surface of the optical element. The illumination optical unit includes a deflection element which is a diffractive optical element or a refractive freeform element. The deflection element simultaneously directs the heating light impinging thereon in different directions.

Microlithographic projection exposure apparatus

An optical beam deflecting element may be used effectively as an energy distribution manipulator in an illumination system to vary the energy distribution within a given spatial intensity distribution in a pupil plane of the illumination system substantially without changing the shape and size and position of illuminated areas in the pupil plane.

Optical beam deflecting element, illumination system including same, and related method

A projection exposure apparatus for microlithography comprises illumination optics for illuminating object field points of an object field in an object plane is disclosed. The illumination optics have, for each object field point of the object field, an exit pupil associated with the object point, where sin(&#x3b3;) is a greatest marginal angle value of the exit pupil. The illumination optics include a multi-mirror array that includes a plurality of mirrors to adjust an intensity distribution in exit pupils associated to the object field points. The illumination optics further contain at least one optical system to temporally stabilize the illumination of the multi-mirror array so that, for each object field point, the intensity distribution in the associated exit pupil deviates from a desired intensity distribution in the associated exit pupil in the case of a centroid angle value sin(&#x3b2;) by less than 2% expressed in terms of the greatest marginal angle value sin(&#x3b3;) of the associated exit pupil and/or, in the case of ellipticity by less than 2%, and/or in the case of a pole balance by less than 2%.

A projection exposure apparatus for microlithography comprises illumination optics for illuminating object field points of an object field in an object plane is disclosed. The illumination optics have, for each object field point of the object field, an exit pupil associated with the object point, where sin(&#x3b3;) is a greatest marginal angle value of the exit pupil. The illumination optics include a multi-mirror array that includes a plurality of mirrors to adjust an intensity distribution in exit pupils associated to the object field points. The illumination optics further contain at least one optical system to temporally stabilize the illumination of the multi-mirror array so that, for each object field point, the intensity distribution in the associated exit pupil deviates from a second adjusted intensity distribution in the associated exit pupil by less than 0.1 in at least one of an inner &#x3c3; or an outer &#x3c3;.

A microlithography projection exposure system has an illumination system with an illumination optical system. The latter can have at least one diffractive optical element, which is divided into multiple adjacently arranged individual elements, each of which has one specified bundle-forming and polarizing effect.

Method of producing a diffractive optical element and diffractive optical element produced by such a method

The disclosure relates to an optical system of an illumination device of a microlithographic projection exposure apparatus, including at least one first light-conductance-increasing element having a plurality of diffractively or refractively beam-deflecting structures extending in a common first preferred direction the light-conductance-increasing element having an optically uniaxial crystal material in such a way that the optical crystal axis of the crystal material is substantially parallel or substantially perpendicular to the first preferred direction.

Optical system of an illumination device of a projection exposure apparatus

Growing community of inventors

Aalen, Germany

Gundula Weiss