Asml Netherlands B.v.

Raimond Visser

Jan Frederik Hoogkamp

Jan Jaap Kuit

Patricius Aloysius Jacobus Tinnemans

Johannes Onvlee

Johannes Hendrikus Gertrudis Franssen

Hubert Marie Segers

Albert Jan Hendrik Klomp

Leo Wilhelmus Maria Kuipers

Johannes Maquine

Sjoerd Nicolaas Lambertus Donders

Joeri Lof

Johannes Petrus Martinus Bernardus Vermeulen

Harmen Klaas Van Der Schoot

Tjarko Adriaan Rudolf Van Empel

Edwin Johan Buis

Peter Ferdinand Greve

Aschwin Lodewijk Hendricus Johannes Van Meer

Pieter Renaat Maria Hennus

Henricus Gerardus Tegenbosch

Petrus Theodorus Rutgers

Patrick Johannes Cornelus Hendrik Smulders

Jan Van Elp

Josephus Cornelius Johannes Antonius Vugts

Anko Jozef Cornelus Sijben

Pieter Johannes Marius Van Groos

Albert Pieter Rijpma

Dirk Jan Bijvoet

Johannes Martinus Andreas Hazenberg

Franciscus Andreas Cornelis Johannes Spanjers

Johannes Charles Adrianus Van Den Berg

Henricus Johannes Adrianus Van De Sande

Martin Dieter Nico Peters

Erwin Theodorus Jacoba Verhagen

Henricus Johannes Louis Marie Vullings

Joost Kauffman

Thijs Vervoort

Gerard Van Den Eijkel

Martijn Hendrikus Wilhelmus Stopel

Zongquan Yang

A sensor system configured to determine a position of a substrate having an edge. The sensor system includes a radiation source arranged to emit a radiation bundle, a reflective element, a detector device and a substrate table having a supporting surface for supporting the substrate. The supporting surface is at least partly along a plane. The radiation source and the detector device are arranged on a first side of the plane. The reflective element is arranged on a second side of the plane other than the first side. The reflective element is arranged to create a reflected bundle by reflecting the radiation bundle. The reflective element is arranged to illuminate the edge with the reflected bundle. The detector device is arranged to receive the reflected bundle.

Sensor system, substrate handling system and lithographic apparatus

A method to determine a rotation of a substrate with respect to the patterning device without using a reference mark on the substrate is presented. At least two structures having corresponding features and present on the substrate, e.g. previously projected patterns, are imaged with a known position with respect to a measurement coordinate system. A distance vector between the at least two structures is determined. From the distance vector, a rotation angle is calculated. In an embodiment of the invention, there is provided a method to estimate a position of the substrate from the acquired image(s). A position is measured and used as a reference position for subsequent substrates of which the rotation angle is to be determined.

Device manufacturing method, orientation determination method and lithographic apparatus

The present invention relates to a lithographic projection apparatus with a supporting structure to support and move an object, like a substrate. The supporting structure may be a robot having a robotic arm with a support frame for supporting, e.g. the substrate. The support frame includes a clamping structure having one or more clamps for holding the substrate during movement. The robot arm comprises one or more compliant parts. The clamp may be a Johnson-Raybeck effect type clamp with an oxidized upper surface. For better de-clamping, a RF AC decaying de-clamping voltage may be provided to the clamp. The apparatus may be cleaned with one single substrate only.

Lithographic support structure

A method for aligning a substrate in a lithographic apparatus includes determining from a geometric reference of the substrate a position of a window on the substrate. The window indicates an area in which an alignment mark of the substrate may be expected. Then, a position of the alignment mark is measured in the window. A relationship between the measured position of the alignment mark and the position of the window is determined. The relationship is stored in a database and the substrate is aligned making use of the measured position of the alignment mark. The above may be repeated for a following aligning of the substrate, prior however to the measuring of the position of the alignment mark in the window, the position of the window is amended making use of the relationship between the measured position of the alignment mark and the position of the window as stored in the database for one or more preceding alignings.

Lithographic apparatus substrate alignment

The present invention provides a lithographic apparatus including an illumination system configured to condition a radiation beam; a patterning device support constructed to support a patterning device, the patterning device placed on the patterning device support being capable of imparting the radiation beam with a pattern in its cross-section to form a patterned radiation beam; a substrate table constructed to hold a substrate; a projection system configured to project the patterned radiation beam onto a target portion of the substrate, and a patterning device handling apparatus, including a single robot for exchanging a patterning device with the patterning device support and a loading station, wherein the robot includes a first holding device configured to hold a patterning device in a first holding position and a second holding device configured to hold a patterning device in a second holding position. Such single robot makes a rapid and accurate exchange of patterning devices possible.

Exchangeable object handling apparatus, lithographic apparatus including such exchangeable object handling apparatus, and device manufacturing method

A load lock for a lithographic apparatus is arranged to transfer an object, like a substrate, into and from the lithographic apparatus. The load lock outer wall defining at least part of a load lock volume accommodating a support unit for supporting the object when in the load lock. The load lock also has a temperature conditioned structure to control the temperature of the object to a desired temperature at least before the object is transferred from the load lock towards the lithographic projection apparatus.

Temperature conditioned load lock, lithographic apparatus comprising such a load lock and method of manufacturing a substrate with such a load lock

Embodiments of the invention include a method of placing a substrate on a support. In an embodiment of the invention, the method includes determining a position of the substrate relative to a reference position via a sensor which outputs a sensor signal to a control unit, the determining including detecting the position of the substrate in a chamber, and determining a gripping position on the substrate; gripping the substrate at the gripping position with a gripper controlled by the control unit, and providing the substrate in a defined position on the support member, the providing including moving the substrate to a fixed position relative to the support member such that the center of the substrate arrives at a predetermined position on the support member.

Method and device for alignment of a substrate

To enable differentiation between a particle and a ghost particle, a detector system resolves radiation from a ghost particle from radiation from an actual particle. The detector system outputs at least two detector signals corresponding to intensities of radiation being incident on different parts of the detector system or the detector system outputs at least two detector signals corresponding to intensities of radiation with different wavelengths being incident on the detector system. If radiation is received from a ghost particle, not each of the at least two detector signals has a level above a predetermined threshold level, whereas radiation received from a particle results in the signals having substantially a same level above a threshold level. The detector system may include a radiation detector device configured to generate the first detector signal in response to radiation incident on at least one predetermined part of the radiation detector device and a radiation blocking assembly configured to prevent radiation not originating from a particle from being incident on the predetermined part of the detector device.

Particle detection device, lithographic apparatus and device manufacturing method

A lithographic apparatus includes an illumination system configured to condition a radiation beam; a support configured to support a patterning device, the patterning device being capable of imparting the radiation beam with a pattern in its cross-section to form a patterned radiation beam; a substrate table configured to hold a substrate; a projection system configured to project the patterned radiation beam onto a target portion of the substrate; and a robot configured to transfer an exchangeable object to and from a support region, the robot including an arm and an end effector, the end effector including a first and second carrier configured to carry respective exchangeable objects, and the end effector being rotatably connected to the arm of the robot around a rotation axis which extends substantially parallel to the support region.

Lithographic apparatus and device manufacturing method

The invention relates to a lithographic projection assembly, having at least two load locks for transferring substrates between a first environment and a lower pressure second environment, a substrate handler with a handler chamber within the second environment and a lithographic projection apparatus including a projection chamber. The handler chamber and the projection chamber communicate via a load position for entering a substrate from the handler chanter into the projection chamber and an unload position for removing the substrate from the projection chamber into the handler chamber. The handler chamber also includes pre-processing means for pre-processing of the substrates and transport means for transferring substrates between the load locks and pre-processing means.

Lithographic projection assembly, substrate handling apparatus and substrate handling method

The present invention relates to a lithographic apparatus including a projection system configured to project a patterned radiation beam onto a target portion of a substrate held on a substrate support, the patterned beam of radiation being patterned with a patterning device held by a patterning device support. The lithographic apparatus includes an exchangeable object handling apparatus for exchanging an exchangeable object with a exchangeable object station and a support, the exchangeable object being one of the substrate and the patterning device and the support being one of the substrate support and the patterning device support, the exchangeable object handling apparatus including an intermediate holding device for holding an exchangeable object, which intermediate holding device can interact with the support to place an exchangeable object on or take an exchangeable object from the support, and a robot which can exchange an exchangeable object with the support, the intermediate holding device and said exchangeable object station.

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Best, Netherlands

Raimond Visser