Nikon Corporation

Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba

Shin-etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.

Shin-etsu Handotai Co., Ltd.

Shin-estu Chemical Co., Ltd.

Tsuneyuki Hagiwara

Osamu Tanitsu

Yasushi Mizuno

Fuminori Hayano

Masahiro Nakagawa

Mitsunori Toyoda

Naonori Kita

Hisashi Nishinaga

Ikuo Hikima

Tsuneo Numanami

Hideyuki Tashiro

Masayuki Nakatsu

Masayuki Mogi

Naoto Kondo

Nozomu Emura

Soichi Inoue

Tadahito Fujisawa

Makoto Kobayashi

Kenichi Kodama

Masashi Ichikawa

Masamitsu Itoh

Shinichi Okita

Takashi Mori

Kenji Yamamoto

Kazuya Ota

Hideo Mizutani

Akikazu Tanimoto

Hideki Komatsuda

Katsushi Nakano

Hiroshi Ooki

Jun Iwasaki

Koichiro Komatsu

Yutaka Iwasaki

Hiromitsu Yoshimoto

Hiroto Horikawa

Hajime Moriya

Naota Konda

An image processing device includes a first processing unit which executes blurring processing in a common focus position on each of plural images in mutually different focus positions, an integration unit which generates an integrated image resulting from integration of the plural images on which the blurring processing is executed, and a second processing unit which generates a composite image having a predetermined blur degree by executing sharpening processing on the integrated image generated by the integration unit based on information in which optical information indicating optical characteristics of an optical system in which the plural images are acquired and a blur degree of the blurring processing in the common focus position are composited together along a depth direction of the plural image.

Image processing device, image processing program, image processing method, and imaging device

An exposure apparatus includes an optical member that can be provided on a stage. The optical member has a first surface contacting a liquid when moved to face a projection system, and a second surface contacting a gas and transmitting light having come from the projection system via the liquid and the first surface. The optical member is configured such that at least a large-angle ray of the light, which has an angle with an optical axis of the projection system sufficiently large to undergo total reflection at an end surface of the projection system when the liquid is absent, travels from the projection system to the second surface without passing through gas. The second surface transmits the large-angle ray, which is received by the light-receiving surface.

Exposure apparatus, exposure method, and method for producing device

An exposure apparatus irradiates a substrate with light via a projection system and liquid, and includes a stage that moves below the projection system, and a light-receiving element having a light-receiving surface. An optical member provided on the stage has a first surface contacting the liquid when moved to face the projection system, and a second surface contacting a gas and transmitting light having come from the projection system via the liquid and the first surface. The optical member is configured such that at least a large-angle ray of the light, which has an angle with an optical axis of the projection system sufficiently large to undergo total reflection at an end surface of the projection system when the liquid is absent, travels from the projection system to the second surface without passing through gas. The second surface transmits the large-angle ray, which is received by the light-receiving surface.

A part of exposure beam through a liquid via a projection optical system enters a light-transmitting section, enters an optical member without passing through gas, and is focused. The exposure apparatus receives the exposure light from the projection optical system to perform various measurements even if the numerical aperture of the projection optical system increases.

Provided is an exposure apparatus that is able to prevent liquid from remaining on a measuring part. An exposure apparatus comprises a measuring system (), which has a first pattern () formed on the upper surface of a substrate stage, and a second area (S) specified on the upper surface in the vicinity of a first area (S), which includes the first pattern (), and a second pattern () is formed in the second area (S) so that the liquid (LQ) that has remained so as to span the first area (S) and the second area (S) retreats from the first area (S) and collects in the second area (S).

Exposure apparatus and device manufacturing method

A main controller moves a reticle stage in a scanning direction, illuminates an area on a reticle including a mark area in which predetermined marks are formed with illumination light, forms an aerial image of at least one mark existing in the mark area via a projection optical system, and measures the aerial image using an aerial image measuring unit. The main controller repeatedly performs such aerial image measurement while moving the reticle stage in the scanning direction. Then, the main controller computes a scanning image plane on which an image of a pattern formed on a reticle is formed by the projection optical system, based on the measurement result of the aerial image of each mark at each movement position. Based on the computation result, the main controller performs focus leveling control of a wafer during scanning exposure. Thus, highly accurate exposure is realized without using a sensor for reticle (mask) position measurement.

Image plane measurement method, exposure method, device manufacturing method, and exposure apparatus

Light is irradiated on a light-shielding pattern on an object surface side of a projection optical system, and light intensity distribution of the light having passed through the projection optical system and slits is detected while slits of an aerial image measuring unit on the image plane side of the projection optical system are moved within a plane perpendicular to the optical axis of the projection optical system, The information concerning the flare of the projection optical system is computed from the light intensity distribution, so that the influence of resist coated on a wafer used in a conventional exposing method can be eliminated, and highly accurate measurement of information concerning the flare can be realized. Further, measurement of information concerning the flare can be performed in a short time comparing to the exposing method because development process or the like of the wafer is not necessary.

Measurement method, exposure method, and device manufacturing method

An aerial image of a measurement mark arranged on a measurement mask is conformed to a center in an X-axis direction of a slit arranged on a Z tilt stage. While illuminating the measurement mark with an illumination light, a slit plate on which the slit is formed is continuously moved in a Z-axis direction, and based on position information of the slit obtained during the movement and a photoelectric conversion signal outputted from an optical sensor that receives the illumination light from the measurement mark via a projection optical system and the slit, a best focus position is detected. Thus, the best focus position of the projection optical system can be measured in a short period of time.

Best focus detection method, exposure method, and exposure apparatus

There is disclosed a wafer flatness evaluation method includes measuring front and rear surface shapes of a wafer. The wafer front surface measured is divided into sites. Then, a flatness calculating method is selected according to a position of the site to be evaluated and flatness in the wafer surface is acquired.

Wafer flatness evaluation method, wafer flatness evaluation apparatus carrying out the evaluation method, wafer manufacturing method using the evaluation method, wafer quality assurance method using the evaluation method, semiconductor device manufacturing method using the evaluation method and semiconductor device manufacturing method using a wafer evaluated by the evaluation method

In a quadrangular photomask blank substrate with a length on each side of at least 6 inches, which has a pair of strip-like regions that extend from 2 to 10 mm inside each of a pair of opposing sides along an outer periphery of a substrate top surface, with a 2 mm edge portion excluded at each end, each strip-like region is inclined downward toward the outer periphery of the substrate, and a difference between maximum and minimum values for height from a least squares plane for the strip-like region to the strip-like region is at most 0.5 &#x3bc;m. The substrate exhibits a good surface flatness at the time of wafer exposure.

Photomask blank substrate, photomask blank and photomask

A photomask blank substrate is made by polishing a starting substrate to a specific flatness in a principal surface region on a top surface of the substrate so as to form a polished intermediate product, then additionally polishing the intermediate product. Substrates made in this way exhibit a good surface flatness at the time of wafer exposure. When a photomask fabricated from a blank obtained from such a substrate is held on the mask stage of a wafer exposure system with a vacuum chuck, the substrate surface undergoes minimal warping, enabling exposure patterns of small geometry to be written onto wafers to good position and linewidth accuracies.

Method of making photomask blank substrates

Provided that a pair of strip-like regions extend from 2 mm to 10 mm inside each of a pair of opposing sides along an outer periphery of a top surface of a substrate on which a mask pattern is to be formed, with a 2 mm edge portion excluded at each end in a lengthwise direction thereof, the height from a least squares plane for the strip-like regions on the substrate top surface to the strip-like regions is measured at intervals of 0.05-0.35 mm in horizontal and vertical directions, and a substrate in which the difference between the maximum and minimum values for the height among all the measurement points is &#x3bd;o&#x3c4; &#x3bc;o&#x3c1;&#x3b5; &#x3c4;&#x3b7;&#x3b1;&#x3bd; 0.5 &#x3bc;m is selected.

Method of selecting photomask blank substrates

Growing community of inventors

Tokyo, Japan

Tsuneyuki Hagiwara