Asml Netherlands B.v.

Carl-zeiss-smt Ag

Laurentius Catrinus Jorritsma

Erik Roelof Loopstra

Johannes Jacobus Matheus Baselmans

Hans Jansen

Timotheus Franciscus Sengers

Richard Joseph Bruls

Heine Melle Mulder

Tammo Uitterdijk

Marcio Alexandre Cano Miranda

Ivo Adam Johannes Thomas

Bauke Jansen

Gheorghe Tanasa

Siebe Landheer

Jeroen Peter Johannes Bruijstens

Arnout Johannes Meester

Maurice Martinus Johannes Van Der Lee

Lambertus Dominicus Noordam

Patricius Aloysius Jacobus Tinnemans

Arno Jan Bleeker

Oscar Franciscus Jozephus Noordman

Johannes Wilhelmus De Klerk

Mark Trentelman

Gerrit Streutker

Freerk Adriaan Stoffels

Wim Tjibbo Tel

Christian Wagner

Bernhard Geuppert

Franz Sorg

Bernardus Antonius Johannes Luttikhuis

Reiner Maria Jungblut

Adrianus Franciscus Petrus Engelen

Peter Deufel

Judocus Marie Dominicus Stoeldraijer

Aart Adrianus Van Beuzekom

Maria Johanna Agnes Rubingh

Johannes Martinus Andreas Hazenberg

Hendrikus Alphonsus Ludovicus Van Dijck

Peter Schaap

Petrus Franciscus Wilhelmus Maria Mandigers

A lithographic apparatus is disclosed that includes a projection system, and a liquid confinement structure configured to at least partly confine immersion liquid to an immersion space defined by the projection system, the liquid confinement structure and a substrate and/or substrate table. Measures are taken in the lithographic apparatus, for example, to reduce the effect of droplets on the final element of the projection system or to substantially avoid such droplet formation.

Lithographic apparatus and a method of operating the apparatus

Immersion lithographic apparatus with a barrier between a projection system and a liquid confinement structure

An illuminator for a lithographic apparatus includes a first illuminator channel, a second illuminator channel, a first switch device, an additional illuminator part and a second switch device. Each of the first and the second illuminator channel includes elements which are adjustable to provide a radiation beam with at least one desired property. The first switch device is configured to receive the radiation beam and arranged to direct the radiation beam between the first and second illuminator channels. The second switch device is arranged to receive the radiation beam from the first and second illuminator channels and direct the radiation beam through the additional illuminator part. The additional illuminator part includes elements which apply at least one additional desired property to the radiation beam.

Stage apparatus, lithographic apparatus and device manufacturing method having switch device for two illumination channels

In a lithographic apparatus, a corrective irradiation procedure is performed using an illumination mode arranged so as to heat a selected part of an element of the projection system near a pupil plane thereof that is relatively unheated during production exposure. The corrective irradiation procedure aims to improve uniformity of optical element heating of the projective system and/or to reduce a phase gradient.

Lithographic apparatus, device manufacturing method and computer program product

A lithographic apparatus has an assembly to exchange optical elements in a pupil plane of its projection system. The optical elements may be pupil filters and may conform to the physical dimensions specified for a reticle standard, e.g. having sides substantially equal to 5, 6 or 9 inches.

Lithographic apparatus, device manufacturing method and exchangeable optical element

A lithographic apparatus includes a masking device that includes a first masking part configured to obscure a first part of a first patterning device before the pattern of the first patterning device is impinged by a radiation beam, a second masking part having an adjustable length, the second masking part configured to obscure a second part of the first patterning device after the pattern of the first patterning device is impinged by the radiation beam and to obscure a first part of a second patterning device before the pattern of the second patterning device is impinged by the radiation beam, and a third masking part configured to obscure a second part of the second patterning device after the pattern of the second patterning device is impinged by the radiation beam.

Lithographic apparatus having masking parts and device manufacturing method

A method of reducing a wave front aberration is provided for a lithographic process whereby the reducing is based on the selected pattern to be printed and the selected illumination mode used for exposure. Wave front aberrations of a projection system of a lithographic apparatus are measured and reduced by calculating adjustments of optical elements of the projection system and applying the calculated adjustments to the projection system. The calculation of adjustments is based on information on a spatial distribution of radiant intensity in a pupil of the projection system as present during exposing the radiation sensitive layer, and is limited to aberrations in projection lens pupil areas of relative high radiant flux.

Method of reducing a wave front aberration, and computer program product

An aberration correction device useable in lithography comprises two elements, at least one of which is relatively rotatable to the other about, for example, an optical axis. One surface of each element has an aspheric form describable by higher Zernike polynomials. When the two surfaces are rotationally aligned, the device has the optical effect of a plane plate. If there is a small relative rotation of the two elements the effect of the device is a phase shift describable by the derivative of the aspheric form. The correction device may be used to correct aberrations caused by lens heating, especially with illumination modes and pattern types resulting in strong off-axis localized pupil filling in the projection system.

Lithographic apparatus, aberration correction device and device manufacturing method

Focal plane errors across the field of an array of focusing elements are reduced by using a non-planar correction surface, shaped such that focal points of the focusing elements lie closer to a single plane than they would if the correction surface were planar. For example, this can be used when an array of focusing elements is used in a projection system of a lithography system.

System and method to correct for field curvature of multi lens array

A lithography apparatus including a projection system configured to project a beam of radiation onto a substrate as an array of sub-beams of radiation and an array of individually controllable elements configured to modulate the sub-beams of radiation. The apparatus also includes a data-path including at least one data manipulation device arranged to at least partly convert data defining a requested pattern to a control signal suitable for controlling the array of individually controllable elements to form substantially the requested pattern on the substrate. The data manipulation device is arranged to carry out the conversion by applying a pseudo-inverted form of a point-spread function matrix to a column vector representing the requested pattern. The point-spread function matrix includes information about the shape and relative position of the point-spread function of each spot to be exposed on the substrate by one of the sub-beams of radiation at a given time.

Lithographic apparatus and device manufacturing method

A lithographic apparatus includes an instrument for determining the radiation intensity distribution at a pupil plane of the projection system while a patterning device is imparting the projection beam with a pattern, a calculation apparatus for calculating the effect on the imaging by the projection system of heating resulting from the projection beam in the projection system having the determined intensity distribution and a controller for adjusting the lithographic apparatus to compensate for the calculated effect of heating.

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Helmond, Netherlands

Laurentius Catrinus Jorritsma