Nikon Corporation

Spansion Llc.

Shinji Mizutani

Masahiko Yasuda

Kazuya Ota

Nobutaka Magome

Masaharu Kawakubo

Noriaki Tokuda

Yoshinobu Higuchi

Hiroaki Narushima

Hiroki Okamoto

Yasuo Araki

Keisuke Kanazawa

Hiroaki Narusima

A memory device includes a nonvolatile memory capable of storing data, a volatile memory capable of being random-accessed, and a controller for transferring data between the nonvolatile memory and the volatile memory and enabling a pseudo access as if the volatile memory were externally directly accessed in accordance with an instruction through an external bus when the data transfer is not performed.

Memory device for controlling nonvolatile and volatile memories

An exposure apparatus for exposing a substrate with an image of a pattern formed on a mask, including an illumination system or irradiation for illuminating or irradiating the mask with exposure light. A projection optical system is included for projecting, onto the substrate, an image of the pattern illuminated by the exposure light. The mask is securely supported on a movable mask stage. In one example, a mask holder is provided for supporting the mask from below. A pressing member is also included for applying, from above, a prescribed force to the mask, outside of the points supported by the mask holder.

Mask-holding apparatus for a light exposure apparatus and related scanning-exposure method

An exposure method according to the present invention includes a first step of forming on a substrate an alignment mark including a concave and convex pattern; a second step of forming a coat over said alignment mark and the other area on said substrate; a third step of flattening said coat; and a fourth step of applying a photosensitive material on said coat flattened by said third step and projecting a mask pattern thereto. The alignment mark is formed by said concave and convex pattern arranged with a pitch which is smaller than the predetermined value between adjacent convex portions having a width of not less than a predetermined value.

Micro devices manufacturing method utilizing concave and convex alignment mark patterns

Micro devices manufacturing method and apparatus therefor

Spoke shaped (petal shaped) through holes or cavities are provided at the center or a substrate holder which attaches and holds a substrate over substantially the entire surface, to allow vertical movement of a center-up member having a plurality of radially extended spoke shaped mounting portions. As a result, degradation in the flatness of a substrate at the time of attaching the substrate to the mounting surface of the substrate holder is minimized.

Substrate transport apparatus, substrate holding apparatus and substrate processing apparatus

In the exposure method and apparatus, the distortion data of the projection lens in each exposure unit itself has already been known for each exposure unit. Accordingly, when the exposure unit which formed the alignment target layer has already been known, the known data of this exposure unit is used to correct at least one of the projection magnification and shot rotation determined according to multipoint EGA operation, and the exposure apparatus is adjusted by the amount of this correction. When the exposure unit forming the alignment target layer is unknown, the alignment mark exposure unit is specified from the state of distribution of non-linear error computed from the alignment mark measured values within a shot. Under thus determined correct projection magnification and shot rotation, a shot area is accurately overlaid with and exposed to a reticle pattern.

Exposure method and apparatus

An alignment device which may include an objective optical system for detecting the light from a first mark formed, for alignment, in a first mark area on a substrate and the light from a second mark formed, for alignment, in a second mark area, a first detection optical system having a first detection area within the viewing field of the objective optical system and adapted to detect the light from the first mark through the objective optical system, a second detection optical system having a second detection area, different from the first detection area, within the viewing field of the objective optical system and adapted to detect the light from the second mark through the objective optical system, and a focus detection system for detecting the deviation of the first mark area with respect to the focal plane of the first detection optical system and the deviation of the second mark area with respect to the focal plane of the second detection optical system, by irradiating the first and second detection areas respective with light beams and receiving the reflected lights therefrom.

Alignment device and method with focus detection system

Alignment is performed with a high degree of accuracy by detecting an offset in the Z position of a wafer mark. A focal position detecting system of a multipoint type is provided which irradiates spot beams on a plurality of measurement points substantially equally distributed on the exposure field of an projection optical system and detects the heights or levels of the irradiated positions. An alignment illumination beam for detecting the position of the wafer mark is irradiated as a slit beam from an alignment sensor, and the spot beams are set so as to be overlaid with the irradiated position of the slit beam. A sample shot where the measured value of a level at the irradiated position of the spot beam exceeds an allowable range of the measured value of a level at another measurement point is excluded from alignment data, and the coordinate positions of each shot area on a wafer are calculated by an EGA method.

Alignment method and exposure system

An alignment method for achieving accurate alignment by accurately eliminating an isolated area with a large nonlinear component of an alignment error from sample areas. A conversion parameter is calculated by statistical processing on the basis of a result obtained by measuring the position of each sample area on a substrate to be processed in advance, and each area on the substrate is aligned on the basis of arrangement coordinate values calculated using the conversion parameter. This method relates to a method of aligning each of a plurality of areas to be processed arranged on the substrate on the basis of arrangement coordinates on a first coordinate system (x, y) set on the substrate to a predetermined process position in a second coordinate system (X, Y) for defining the moving position of the substrate.

Alignment method

Micro devices manufacturing method comprising the use of a second

Three layer patterns are formed on a shot area, and wafer marks for X axis and wafer marks for Y axis are formed in each of the first to third layers. When a reticle pattern to be exposed has a certain relationship with the first and second layer patterns, an alignment reference coordinate value is determined on the basis of coordinate values of the wafer marks in the first and second layers. Alignment between a predetermined shot area and a reticle pattern is performed on the basis of the alignment reference coordinate value. The alignment reference coordinate value can be determined on the basis of an average value or a weighted mean value of the coordinate values of the wafer marks.

Growing community of inventors

Kawasaki, Japan

Shinji Mizutani