Carl Zeiss Smt Gmbh

Carl-zeiss-smt Ag

Carl Zeiss Sms Ltd.

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Carl Zeiss Semiconductor Manufacturing Technologies Ag

Toralf Gruner

Alexander Epple

Michael Totzeck

Heiko Feldmann

Daniel Kraehmer

Vladimir Kamenov

Norbert Wabra

Thomas Schicketanz

Wilhelm Ulrich

Sascha Bleidistel

Joachim Hartjes

Markus Schwab

Karl-Heinz Schuster

Kerstin Hild

Wolfgang Singer

Olaf Conradi

Alexander Wolf

Susanne Beder

Ulrich Loering

Olaf Dittmann

Aurelian Dodoc

Manfred Maul

Aksel Goehnermeier

Franz Sorg

Jochen Weber

Bernhard Kneer

Birgit Enkisch

Damian Fiolka

Markus Hauf

Michael Gerhard

Helmut Beierl

Ralf Mueller

Christoph Zaczek

Winfried M Kaiser

Hans-Juergen Mann

Markus Deguenther

Johannes Wangler

Ulrich Wegmann

Boris Bittner

Christian Wagner

Johannes Ruoff

Alexander Kohl

Ricarda Schoemer

Nils Dieckmann

Arif Kazi

Markus Brotsack

Jens Kugler

Bernhard Geuppert

Johannes Lippert

Rudolf Von Buenau

Sonja Schneider

Julian Kaller

Wolfgang Hummel

Vitaliy Shklover

Albrecht Ehrmann

Ulrich Schoenhoff

Peter Deufel

Gerald Richter

Payam Tayebati

Olaf Rogalsky

Hubert Holderer

Ulrich Weber

Hartmut Enkisch

Hans-Jürgen Mann

Eric Eva

Alexandra Pazidis

Thomas Scheruebl

Wilfried Clauss

Wolfgang Harnisch

Ralf Zweering

Michael Patra

Bernhard Gellrich

David R Shafer

Martin Endres

Stefan Xalter

Ingo Saenger

Armin Schoeppach

Thomas Korb

Bernd Doerband

Michael Arnz

Ulrich Matejka

Bernd Geh

Frederik Bijkerk

Dirk Hellweg

Stefan Schulte

Holger Walter

Markus Mengel

Andras G Major

Hans-Jochen Paul

Severin Waldis

Gerhard Fuerter

Martin Weiser

Marwène Nefzi

Walter Pauls

Ralf Scharnweber

Rudolf Von B&uuml;nau

Petrus Theodorus Rutgers

Norman Baer

Stephan Six

Christian Wald

A projection exposure apparatus for semiconductor lithography includes a mirror and a temperature-regulating device for regulating temperature on the basis of radiation. The mirror includes at least one cutout. The temperature-regulating device includes a temperature-regulating body arranged without contact in the cutout of the mirror. The temperature-regulating body has a cavity. A fluid for temperature regulation of the temperature-regulating body is present in the cavity.

Projection exposure apparatus for semiconductor lithography

A projection exposure apparatus comprises a projection objective, and the projection objective comprises an optical device, wherein the optical device comprises an optical element having an optically effective surface and an electrostrictive actuator. The electrostrictive actuator is deformable by a control voltage being applied. The electrostrictive actuator is functionally connected to the optical element to influence the surface shape of the optically effective surface. A control device supplies the electrostrictive actuator with the control voltage. A measuring device is configured, at least at times while the electrostrictive actuator influences the optically effective surface of the optical element, to measure directly and/or to determine indirectly the temperature and/or a temperature change of the electrostrictive actuator and/or the surroundings thereof to take account of a temperature-dependent influence during driving of the electrostrictive actuator by the control device.

Projection objective including an optical device

A facet assembly is a constituent part of a facet mirror for an illumination optical unit for projection lithography. The facet assembly has a facet with a reflection surface for reflecting illumination light. A facet main body of the facet assembly has at least one hollow chamber. A reflection surface chamber wall of the hollow chamber forms at least one portion of the reflection surface. An actuator control apparatus of the facet assembly is operatively connected to the hollow chamber for the controlled deformation of the reflection surface chamber wall. The result is a facet assembly that is usable flexibly as a constituent part of a facet mirror equipped therewith within an illumination optical unit for projection lithography.

Facet assembly for a facet mirror

An optical assembly of a microlithography imaging device comprises a holding device for holding an optical element. The holding device has a holding element having first and second interface sections. The first interface section for a first interface connecting the holding element and the optical element in an installed state. The second interface section forms a second interface connecting the holding element and a support unit in the installed state. The support unit connects the optical element to a support structure to support the optical element on the support structure via a supporting force. The holding device comprises an actuator device engaging on the holding element between the first and second interfaces. The actuator device acts on the holding element via a controller so that a specifiable interface deformation and/or a specifiable interface force distribution acting on the optical element is set on the first interface.

Support for an optical element

A stop, such as a numerical aperture stop, obscuration stop or false-light stop, for a lithography apparatus, includes a light-transmissive aperture and a stop element, in which or at which the aperture is provided. The stop element is opaque and fluid-permeable outside the aperture.

Stop, optical system and lithography apparatus

A mirror, e.g. for a microlithographic projection exposure apparatus, includes an optical effective surface, a mirror substrate, a reflection layer stack for reflecting electromagnetic radiation incident on the optical effective surface, at least one first electrode arrangement, at least one second electrode arrangement, and an actuator layer system situated between the first and the second electrode arrangements. The actuator layer system is arranged between the mirror substrate and the reflection layer stack, has a piezoelectric layer, and reacts to an electrical voltage applied between the first and the second electrode arrangements with a deformation response in a direction perpendicular to the optical effective surface. The deformation response varies locally by at least 20% in PV value for a predefined electrical voltage that is spatially constant across the piezoelectric layer.

Mirror, in particular for a microlithographic projection exposure apparatus

Methods for characterizing the surface shapes of optical elements include the following steps: carrying out, in an interferometric test arrangement, at least a first interferogram measurement on the optical element by superimposing a test wave, which has been generated by diffraction of electromagnetic radiation on a diffractive element and has been reflected at the optical element, carrying out at least one additional interferogram measurement on in each case one calibrating mirror for determining calibration corrections, and determining the deviation from the target shape of the optical element based on the first interferogram measurement carried out on the optical element and the determined calibration corrections. At least two interferogram measurements are carried out for the at least one calibrating mirror, which differ from one another with regard to the polarization state of the electromagnetic radiation.

Method and device for characterizing the surface shape of an optical element

A projection exposure method for exposing a radiation-sensitive substrate with at least one image of a pattern of a mask is provided in which an illumination field of the mask is illuminated by illumination radiation with an operating wavelength λ that was provided by an illumination system.

Projection exposure method and projection lens with setting of the pupil transmission

A microlithographic projection exposure mirror has a mirror substrate (), a reflection layer system () for reflecting electromagnetic radiation that is incident on the mirror's optical effective surface, and at least one piezoelectric layer (), which is arranged between the mirror substrate and the reflection layer system and to which an electric field for producing a locally variable deformation is applied by a first electrode arrangement situated on the side of the piezoelectric layer facing the reflection layer system, and by a second electrode arrangement situated on the side of the piezoelectric layer facing the mirror substrate. One of the electrode arrangements is assigned a mediator layer () for setting an at least regionally continuous profile of the electrical potential along the respective electrode arrangement. The mediator layer has at least two mutually electrically insulated regions (, . . . ).

An arrangement of a microlithographic optical imaging device includes first and second supporting structures. The first supporting structure supports at least one optical element of the imaging device via an active relative situation control device of a control device. The first supporting structure supports the second supporting structure via supporting spring devices of a vibration decoupling device. The supporting spring devices act kinematically parallel to one another. Each supporting spring device defines a supporting force direction and a supporting length along the supporting force direction. The second supporting structure supports a measuring device of the control device. The measuring device is connected to the relative situation control device. The measuring device outputs to the relative situation control device measurement information representative for the position and/or the orientation of the at least one optical element in relation to a reference in at least one degree of freedom in space.

Compensation of creep effects in an imaging device

A mirror that has a mirror substrate (), a reflection layer stack () reflecting electromagnetic radiation incident on the optical effective surface (), and at least one piezoelectric layer () arranged between the mirror substrate and the reflection layer stack and to which an electric field for producing a locally variable deformation is applied by way of a first electrode arrangement and a second electrode arrangement situated on alternate sides of the piezoelectric layer. In one aspect, both the first and the second electrode arrangements have a plurality of electrodes (), to each of which an electrical voltage relative to the respective other electrode arrangement can be applied via leads (). Separate mediator layers () set continuous electrical potential profiles along the respective electrode arrangement, and where said mediator layers differ from one another in their average electrical resistance by a factor of at least 1.5.

Mirror, in particular for a microlithographic projection exposure system

A mirror having a mirror substrate (), a reflection layer stack () reflecting electromagnetic radiation having an operating wavelength that is incident on the optical effective surface (), and at least one piezoelectric layer (), arranged between the substrate and the reflection layer stack and to which an electric field producing a locally variable deformation is applied. A first electrode arrangement () situated on the side of the piezoelectric layer faces the reflection layer stack, and a second electrode arrangement () is situated on the side of the piezoelectric layer facing the mirror substrate. Optionally, a bracing layer () is provided, which limits sinking of the piezoelectric layer () into the mirror substrate () when an electric field is applied, in comparison with an analogous construction lacking the bracing layer, thereby increasing the piezoelectric layer's effective deflection.

A method and an apparatus for determining the heating state of an optical element in a microlithographic optical system involves at least one contactless sensor which is based on the reception of electromagnetic radiation from the optical element. The radiation range captured by the sensor is varied for the purposes of ascertaining a temperature distribution in the optical element.

Method and device for determining the heating state of an optical element in an optical system for microlithography

A mirror for a microlithographic projection exposure apparatus, and a method for operating a deformable mirror. In one aspect, a mirror includes an optical effective surface (), a mirror substrate (), a reflection layer stack () for reflecting electromagnetic radiation incident on the optical effective surface, and at least one piezoelectric layer () arranged between the mirror substrate and the reflection layer stack and to which an electric field for producing a locally variable deformation is able to be applied by a first electrode arrangement situated on the side of the piezoelectric layer () facing the reflection layer stack, and by a second electrode arrangement situated on the side of the piezoelectric layer facing the mirror substrate. The piezoelectric layer has a plurality of columns spatially separated from one another by column boundaries, wherein a mean column diameter of the columns is in the range of 0.1 &#x3bc;m to 50 &#x3bc;m.

Mirror for a microlithographic projection exposure apparatus, and method for operating a deformable mirror

The disclosure provides a method and to an apparatus for determining the heating state of a mirror in an optical system, in particular in a microlithographic projection exposure apparatus. A method for determining the heating state of an optical element includes: measuring values of a first temperature that the optical element has at a first position using a temperature sensor; and estimating a second temperature that the optical element has at a second position, which is located at a distance from the first position, on the basis of the measured values, wherein estimating the second temperature is accomplished while taking into account a temporal change in the previously measured values.

Method and device for determining the heating state of a mirror in an optical system

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Aalen-Hofen, Germany

Toralf Gruner