Canon Kabushiki Kaisha

Junji Isohata

Hironori Yamamoto

Makoto Miyazaki

Koichi Matsushita

Kunitaka Ozawa

Hideki Yoshinari

Nobuyoshi Tanaka

Kazuo Iizuka

Mikio Nakasugi

Masao Totsuka

Takao Yokomatsu

Yoshiharu Nakamura

Hiroshi Sato

Mitsuya Sato

Shinji Tsutsui

Fumio Sakai

Kei Takatsu

Tamotsu Karasawa

A projection exposure mask including a first mask pattern for exposing a member to form a continuous pattern thereon, and a second mask pattern for exposing the member to form a discontinuous pattern thereon. One of the first and second mask patterns is a reflecting type mask pattern and the other mask pattern is a transmitting type mask pattern.

Projection exposure mask, projection exposure apparatus, and projection exposure method

A projection exposure apparatus with a small size and low cost suitable for repeated pattern exposure. The apparatus includes an illumination system which irradiates light to a mask including plural columns of a mask pattern for repeated exposure to a member to form plural columns of an exposure pattern, a projection system which projects light from the mask onto the member, an exposure stage which moves the member, and a mask stage which moves the mask. The light irradiation and step driving of the exposure stage for moving the member by a movement amount equal to n times a pitch of the columns of the exposure pattern are alternately performed. The mask is moved by a movement amount equal to n times a pitch of the columns of the mask pattern with step driving of the exposure stage in early and later phases of the repeated exposure.

Projection exposure apparatus

A projection exposure apparatus includes a projection exposure mask. The projection exposure mask includes a first mask pattern for exposing a member to form a continuous pattern thereon and a second mask pattern for exposing the member to form a discontinuous pattern thereon, one of the first and second mask patterns being a reflecting type mask and the other mask pattern being a transmitting type mask pattern, a projection system which projects light from the reflecting type mask pattern and light from the transmitting type mask pattern onto the member, a first illumination system which irradiates light to the reflecting type mask pattern from one side of the projection exposure mask, a second illumination system which irradiates light to the transmitting type mask pattern from the opposite side of the one side of the projection exposure mask, and a substrate stage which moves the member in a direction substantially orthogonal to a projection light axis of the projection system.

Disclosed are an exposure apparatus and process, including a holding unit for holding first and second objects such as a mask and a substrate, a first illumination system for illuminating the first object with an exposure light, a projection optical system for forming an image of a portion such as a pattern portion of the first object illuminated with the exposure light onto the second object and a second illumination system for illuminating a portion such as peripheral portion of the second object held by the holding unit outside of a portion of the second object illuminated with the exposure light from the first illumination system. The exposure apparatus or process may further include a moving unit or step for moving the first and second objects as a unit relative to the projection optical system and a control unit or step for causing the moving unit to move the first and second objects as a unit relative to the projection optical system while causing the first illumination system and the second illumination system to illuminate the first object and the second object, respectively, so that the image of the pattern on the first object is tranferred onto the second object through the projection optical system.

Exposure apparatus including two illuminating systems and exposure

An exposure apparatus for exposing an exposure member or wafer to a pattern with radiation in a step-and-repeat manner thereby to transfer images of the pattern onto different regions on a surface of the exposure member. The apparatus includes an XY stage for moving the wafer in X- and Y-directions, a .theta. stage for moving the wafer in a rotational direction relative to the XY stage, laser interferometers for measuring an amount of movement of the wafer by the XY stage, in each of the X- and Y-directions, by use of a mirror member mounted on the .theta. stage, and a carriage for carrying the XY and .theta. stages and a portion of the interferometers to move the wafer relative to an exposing system for effecting the scan-exposure on the region of the wafer. The mirror member is placed on the .theta. stage, and another portion of the interferometers is mounted on a fixed system independent of the carriage. The inclination of the mirror member is detected at any desired time by moving the carriage and calculating the inclination from the amount of movement of the carriage and the amount of displacement of the mirror member measured by the interferometer mounted on the fixed system. Based on the thus detected inclination of the mirror member, the inclination is corrected and the stepwise movement of the XY stage can be performed with a higher accuracy, so that the transfer accuracy between the pattern images printed on the wafer in the case of the step-and-repeat exposure can be highly improved.

Exposure apparatus including device for determining movement of an object

An apparatus for photolithographically transferring, onto a plate-like member a pattern corresponding to picture elements of a liquid crystal display device and a pattern corresponding to driving circuits and so on, by use of a photomask. The surface of the plate-like member is divided into different areas and, each time one of the different areas of the plate-like member is subjected to the pattern transfer operation, the plate-like member is fed stepwise relative to an optical system provided to project an image of the photomask onto the plate-like member. At the same time, the range of the photomask pattern which is to be transferred onto the plate-like member is changed. By this, a portion of the picture-element pattern and a portion of the circuit pattern are transferred onto each of the different areas on the plate-like member, whereby a large-size pattern contributable to form a large-size display picture plane and a pattern contributable to form a control circuit for controlling the picture plane are transferred on the plate-like member.

Exposure apparatus

A flat panel display device, such as a liquid crystal panel display device, of large size and a method and apparatus of manufacture of the same. The display device may be provided by discrete or divided display sections. For the manufacture of the panel display device, a pattern for forming picture elements and a drive circuit therefor is photolithographically transferred onto the whole surface of a substrate or base plate in a step-and-repeat manner. In one aspect of the invention, different masks having patterns corresponding to portions of the first-mentioned pattern are used. After the pattern of one of the masks is transferred onto one portion of the substrate, the one mask is replaced by another which the substrate is moved stepwise so that the pattern of the other mask can be transferred onto another portion of the substrate. By repeating the pattern transfer, with different masks, and repeating the stepwise movement of the substrate, the whole of the first-mentioned pattern is transferred onto the whole surface of the substrate with a high resolving power.

Flat panel display device and manufacturing of the same

A conveyor device for alignment in which minutely displaceable members and hydraulic fluid supply pads are disposed between a slide and a guide. The relative position of the slide and the guide is adjusted by controlling the dimension of the minutely displaceable members.

Conveyor device for alignment

An exposure apparatus for exposing in a step-and-scan manner a plate-like member to a pattern with radiation so that images of the pattern are transferred onto different regions on the plate-like member. The apparatus includes a mirror imaging optical system for projecting the image of the pattern onto the plate-like member, a carriage for scanningly moving, at the time of exposure, the plate-like member relative to the mirror imaging system, and a stage movably mounted on the carriage for step-feeding the plate-like member at the time of non-exposure so as to sequentially place the different regions of the plate-like member at an exposure station under the mirror imaging system. A locking system is provided to lock the stage relative to the carriage by use of vacuum, at the time of exposure, whereby unwanted displacement of the plate-like member relative to the carriage at the time of scanning exposure is prevented. Also, any positional deviation which may be caused by the locking of the stage is compensated for, by controlling supply of air pressure to linear air-bearings supporting the carriage.

An exposure apparatus for exposing in a step-and-scan manner a plate-like member to a pattern with radiation so that images of the pattern are transferred onto different regions on the plate-like member. The exposure apparatus includes a mirror imaging optical system for projecting the image of the pattern onto the plate-like member. Also, the exposure apparatus includes a carriage for scanningly moving, at the time of exposure, the plate-like member relative to the mirror imaging optical system and a stage for step-feeding the plate-like member at the time of non-exposure so as to sequentially place the different regions of the plate-like member at an exposure station under the mirror imaging system. The stage is mounted on the carriage, and the movement of the carriage is guided by linear air-bearings. The apparatus is arranged such that inclination of the carriage relative to the mirror imaging system to be caused by the movement of the stage is corrected by controlling the amount of air supply to the linear air-bearings, whereby occurrence of shift between the images to be transferred onto the plate-like member is prevented regardless of the change in position of the stage relative to the carriage. In another aspect, the amount of movement of the stage is corrected in accordance the amount of image shift which otherwise may be caused, whereby occurrence of such image shift is prevented.

A device for controlling the shape of a surface of a plate-like member such as a semiconductor wafer, includes support for supporting the plate-like member from a reverse surface thereof, a holding system for holding a portion of the reverse surface of the plate-like member on the support, and a control for controlling a pressure in a closed space which is related, when the plate-like member is supported by the support, to a portion of the reverse surface of the plate-like member other than the first-mentioned portion, such that the pressure in the closed space is changeable to be increased or decreased as compared with an initial pressure in the closed space when the plate-like member is supported by the support, to control deformation of the plate-like member to thereby control the surface shape of the plate-like member.

Surface shape controlling device

A position detecting device usable in an exposure apparatus for transferring an image of a first object onto a second object, for detecting the position of at least one of the first and second objects, includes a rotatable portion having a carrying portion for carrying thereon the at least one object, a first supporting member for supporting the rotatable portion, the first supporting member including a first driving system for moving the rotatable portion in a rotational direction, second supporting member for supporting the first supporting member, the second supporting member including a second driving system for moving the first supporting member in a rotational direction, and a displacement detecting system for detecting displacement of the first supporting member.

A step-and-repeat type exposure apparatus for photoprinting patterns on different portions of a workpiece, for the manufacture of a large-size pattern to be used in a panel display device, for example. Plural masks having respective patterns are used and, each time the pattern of one of the masks is transferred onto corresponding one of the portions of the workpiece, the workpiece is displaced while, on the other hand, the used mask is replaced by a subsequent mask. For the exposure of a first one of the portions of the workpiece, the first portion is aligned with a corresponding first mask, set at a reference position, by use of alignment marks provided on the first portion and the first mask. In regard to the exposure of a second one of the portions of the workpiece, the workpiece is moved while monitoring the position thereof by use of a laser interferometer, so that the second portion is brought into alignment with a second mask placed at the reference position.

Growing community of inventors

Tokyo, Japan

Junji Isohata