Nikon Corporation

Fujitsu Corporation

Nippon Kogaku K.k.

Masato Shibuya

Hiroshi Ooki

Soichi Owa

Kazuya Okamoto

Osamu Tanitsu

Shinji Fujimoto

Hisashi Kaneko

Tsuneyori Ino

Mitsuhiro Izumi

Yukihiro Komura

Kei Funabashi

Nobumichi Kanayamaya

Tetsuo Takahashi

Takashi Mori

Hideo Mizutani

Hideki Komatsuda

Yutaka Ichihara

Yuji Kudo

Susumu Mori

Makoto Uehara

Masaomi Kameyama

Takashi Gemma

Mitsunori Toyoda

Yoshiharu Matsuda

Akira Miyaji

Toshihiko Ozawa

Isao Sato

Masaya Komatsu

Keiichiro Sakato

Yoshifumi Tokoyoda

Keiji Inada

Keiichi Miyajima

Toshiyuki Namikawa

Shuji Toyonaga

Akihiko Goto

Tadayosi Kokubo

A hard disk drive includes a base having a bottom plate. A magnetic body is embedded in the bottom plate. The magnetic body is allowed to serve as a magnetic shield in the hard disk drive. The magnetic body is allowed to have a sufficient thickness without requiring an additional space outside the base, since the magnetic body is embedded in the base. The magnetic field directed outside the base can reliably be absorbed at the magnetic body. The magnetic body may be received in a depression defined in the bottom plate. The depression may be formed based on a reduction in the thickness of the bottom plate.

Recording medium drive with magnetic body embedded in housing base opposite voice coil motor to suppress leakage flux

A magnetic disk device comprises a magnetic disk in which a data zone is formed. An actuator has a voice coil and a head slider carrying a magnetic head, the actuator being swung to move the magnetic head over the disk between an innermost position of the data zone and an outermost position of the data zone. A magnet has a magnetization center and is opposed to the voice coil so that a voice coil motor which swings the actuator is formed, the magnet having a north pole and a south pole confronting each other via the magnetization center. The magnetic disk device is provided so that a deviation of a center of the voice coil from the magnetization center when the magnetic head is in the innermost position of the data zone is substantially equal to a deviation of the center of the voice coil from the magnetization center when the magnetic head is in the outermost position of the data zone.

Magnetic head actuator with centered deviation

Magnetic head actuator with equalized deviation

Optical integrator, illumination optical apparatus, exposure apparatus and observation apparatus

A method and illumination optical system forms a modified illumination configuration on an optical integrator so that a secondary light source having a desired modified illumination configuration is formed and light loss is minimized. A light beam shape changing element that diffuses illumination in a plurality of directions, and an angular light beam forming element that forms a plurality of light source images operate together to create a modified illumination configuration on the optical integrator. Since the secondary light source has a desired modified illumination configuration, an aperture stop used to restrict the size and/or shape of the secondary light source blocks only a small amount of illumination, or can be eliminated altogether. It is possible to alter the annular ratio and outer diameter of an annular or quadrupole modified illumination configuration by changing the magnification of a zoom optical system positioned between the light beam shape changing element and the angular light beam forming element. Furthermore, by changing the focal length of a zoom optical system (which is positioned upstream of the optical integrator), it is possible to change the outer diameter of the annular or quadrupole secondary light source without changing the annular ratio thereof.

Method and apparatus for illuminating a surface using a projection imaging apparatus

Image-formation methods and photosensitive materials used in such methods are disclosed that form very high-resolution patterns. The photosensitive materials comprise an ingredient that is triggered by a radical to undergo a latent-image-forming reaction. The radicals are produced by photons from an illumination light. Alternatively, the ingredient is triggered by a reactive-intermediate compound that is activated by the exposure-produced radical. The photosensitive materials possess a non-linear sensitivity characteristic in which the latent-image reaction density increases according to the m,power (m>1) of the incident light intensity. The photosensitive material can be applied to a sensitive substrate for exposure. Multiple exposures of the sensitive substrate are performed using a projected mask pattern in the presence of a radical deactivator. The multiple exposures can be performed while: (a) changing the exposure intensity distribution on the photosensitive material, or (b) shifting the projected mask pattern and the sensitive substrate relative to each other by a specified amount, or (c) using a different projected mask pattern for each exposure.

Image formation method with photosensitive material

An illumination optical apparatus (IOA,) and an exposure apparatus (EA,) having same, that reduces coherence in the illumination light beam, which in turn eliminates illumination non-uniformities at the mask (,) and wafer (,). The illumination apparatus comprises, in order along an optical axis (AX), a coherent light source (,) capable of generating a first light beam (b,) having a coherence length, the light beam being directed along a first optical path. Further included is a depolarizer (,) and a first optical delay element (,). The latter is capable of splitting from the first light beam a second light beam (b,) which travels a delay optical path (DOP,) with a path length not less than the coherence length of the first light beam. The delay optical path returns to said first optical path at a deflection angle from said optical delay element. The illumination optical system may also include a plurality (i.e., second, third, etc.) optical delay elements or splitting delay stages (e.g.,,) having different path lengths.

Illumination optical apparatus and projection exposure apparatus

After a photoresist is applied onto a wafer, a contrast enhancement material (CEM) layer is applied onto this photoresist. A pattern is projected through this CEM layer onto the photoresist. Next, this CEM layer is removed from the photoresist and thereafter a new CEM layer is again applied onto the photoresist. Another pattern is projected through this new CEM layer onto the photoresist, whereby the photoresist is exposed in accordance with a composite pattern of the two patterns. This composite pattern can surpass the resolution limit of projection optical system.

Exposure method and apparatus

Apparatus and methods are disclosed for increasing the illuminance at a mask used for proximity-type microlithography and for achieving increases in throughput. A mask defining a pattern is illuminated by an illumination optical system. The pattern is transferred to a workpiece separated from the mask by a prescribed standoff. The mask and workpiece can be relatively moved in a scan direction. With respect to the illumination optical system, the workpiece-side numerical aperture in a first direction on the plane of the mask is different from the workpiece-side numerical aperture in a second direction, perpendicular to the first direction, on the plane of the mask. A reflective-type relay optical system can be included that comprises first and second spherical mirrors that do not produce chromatic aberrations.

Proximity-type microlithography apparatus and method

Methods and apparatus are disclosed for microlithographically exposing a photosensitive substrate comprising single-exposure areas and multiple-exposure areas. After exposing the substrate, line widths in the single-exposure areas are substantially the same as line widths in the multiple-exposure areas. Also disclosed are masks comprising a first mask pattern used to expose the single-exposure areas once and a plurality of other mask patterns for exposing the multiple-exposure areas a predetermined number of times. Each of the other mask patterns allows a lower intensity of illumination light flux to be distributed to the multiple-exposure areas per exposure of the substrate than allowed by the first mask pattern. Consequently, the average intensity of illumination-light flux distributed to the single-exposure area after one exposure is substantially equal to the average intensity of illumination-light flux distributed to the multiple-exposure areas after a predetermined number of exposures of such areas.

Microlithography projection-exposure masks, and methods and apparatus

Projection exposure systems and methods are disclosed that achieve higher light intensities and reduce the time required for each exposure in multiple exposures of non-linear resists such as a two-photon-absorption resist. Using spatial redistribution of laser light, an illumination optical system forms an illumination region that illuminates only a portion of the pattern on a mask with spatially coherent light from a light source. The system forms the entire mask pattern on a substrate by repeating a non-linear exposure while moving the illumination region and the mask pattern relative to one another. To exploit temporal redistribution of laser light, an illumination optical system employs a pulsed-oscillation-type laser light source to form a mask pattern while varying the light intensity profile on a mask.

Projection exposure system and method

The present invention relates to a projection exposure method and an exposure apparatus for projecting a pattern on a photo-mask through a projection optical system onto a predetermined photosensitive material. The photosensitive material is a nonlinear photosensitive material in which the effective light intensity distribution is nonlinear to the intensity of incident exposure light. Further, multiple exposure is made with plural patterns having a certain lateral shift therebetween, or multiple exposure is made with shifting the position of an identical pattern, whereby multiple exposure is effected with patterns different in intensity distribution on the photosensitive material. A high-resolution pattern can be formed over the resolution limit of projection optical system by the above arrangement.

In an interferometer, reflected light from a reference surface and a subject surface are introduced to an imaging optical system through a beam splitter, and an interference fringe formed from light reflected from the both surfaces is observed with a detection optical system. An alignment optical member is disposed in an optical path between the imaging optical system and an image plane of the interference fringe such that the rear focal point of the alignment optical member is located at the image plane. The alignment optical member is inserted in the optical path in aligning the subject surface and is removed in measuring the interference fringe. Accurate alignment of the subject surface is easily attained. A beam expander is interposed between a polarizing beam splitter and the subject surface and a 90.degree. retarder is interposed between the beam expander and the subject surface. The 90.degree. retarder is constructed of one or a plurality of reflecting mirrors formed of dielectric multilayer films. Noise introduced to the imaging optical system is minimized.

Interferometric surface profiler with an alignment optical member

An illumination optical system for supplying polarized illumination light to an object to be illuminated. The light from a light source is separated by a polarizing beam splitter into a first polarized light component as the illumination light and a second polarized light component which is different in polarizing direction from the first polarized light component. A first reflecting optical member for returning the second polarized light component to the light source side and a converging optical system are arranged in such a manner that a light source image due to the backward light from the first reflecting optical member is formed at a position apart from the light source in a direction substantially perpendicular to the optical axis of the converging optical system. The backward light is converted by a polarizing element to a polarized light of the same polarizing direction as the first polarized light component and it is again emitted from the polarizing beam splitter at an optical axis position adjacent to the first polarized light component.

Illumination optical system

A scanning type microscope includes a coherent light source, a condenser for condensing rays of light supplied from the coherent light source on an object, and a phase member disposed between the coherent light source and the condenser, the phase member having first and second phase areas to provide a desired phase difference on the wave front of the rays of light reaching the object. The microscope further includes an objective for guiding the rays of light coming from the object, a photodetector arrangement which separately detects light from a first of two optical path areas respectively corresponding to the first phase area of the phase member and the second phase area of the phase member, and a scanning arrangement for relatively moving the object and the position at which the rays of light are condensed by the condenser. A phase pattern on the object diffracts light from the second phase area into the optical path area corresponding to the first phase area. The diffracted light interferes with light from the first phase area, thus enabling detection of the phase pattern by contrast.

Scanning type microscope with phase member

Growing community of inventors

Omiya, Japan

Masato Shibuya