Nikon Corporation

Other

Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha Corporation

Nippon Kogaku K.k.

Tsuyoshi Naraki

Susumu Mori

Masamitsu Yanagihara

Kei Nara

Hiroshi Chiba

Seiji Miyazaki

Taimi Oketani

Masami Seki

Yasunori Nishimura

Shuji Kawamura

Takashi Mori

Hiroshi Tanaka

Hiroshi Shirasu

Tomohide Hamada

Yukio Kakizaki

Tetsuo Kikuchi

Tsuyoshi Narabe

Noriaki Yamamoto

Kazuhiko Hori

Haruo Ozawa

Hiromitsu Iwata

Jun Nagatsuka

Tsuyohsi Narabe

Exposure method

Exposure apparatus

An illumination device emits detection light toward the surface of a substrate from an oblique direction with respect to the substrate. The detection light is shaped into a slit beam by an optical shaper. An alteration device changes the width of the slit beam by controlling the optical shaper. The slit beam strikes the surface of the substrate through an optical element. The slit beam reflected from the surface of the substrate is oscillated along the width direction of the slit by a controlled oscillation mirror. A detector detects the surface height of the substrate based on the oscillating slit beam.

Surface height detecting apparatus and exposure apparatus using the same

Scanning type exposure apparatus and exposure method

A substrate coated with a photosensitive agent is exposed to light beams passing through a mask by projecting the light beams upon the substrate through a projection optical system, on which occasion areas having a large layer thickness of the photosensitive agent on the substrate are subjected to double exposures, i.e., the exposure through the projection optical system and an exposure through an optical system different therefrom.

Exposure method and scanning type exposure apparatus

A projection exposure apparatus has a function to measure orthogonality between movement mirrors for interferometers for measuring positions of a substrate table in X and Y directions. The substrate table is moved by a distance L along a direction of a third axis which is included in an XY plane and inclined at an angle .alpha. with respect to a Y axis, while operating a movement mirror and an interferometer for the direction of the third axis. A component in the Y direction corresponding to the distance L in the direction of the third axis is defined as d. A movement distance of the substrate table in the X direction after movement of the substrate table by the distance L in the direction of the third axis is determined by the interferometer for measuring the position in the X direction, which is defined as S. An orthogonality error .theta. can be determined in accordance with .theta.=tan.sup.-1 [(d-S)/d]. The position of the substrate table can be correctly controlled by moving the substrate table while giving an offset to correct the error. This function can be also applied to a mask stage.

Method for measuring orthogonality having a third interferometer which

Method for measuring orthogonality in a stage of an exposure apparatus

A scan type exposure apparatus has a mask stage for mounting a mask formed with an exposure pattern in a pattern area; a substrate stage for mounting a rectangular photosensitive substrate; a driving unit for moving the mask stage and the substrate stage in synchronism parallel to one side of the rectangular photosensitive substrate; illumination optical systems for illuminating partial areas of the mask with light beams; and projection optical systems for projecting images of the illuminated areas of the mask onto the photosensitive substrate. The projection optical system projects the light beams passing through the exposure pattern area of the illuminated mask on a central area, excluding peripheral areas, of an exposure area of the photosensitive substrate and projects the light beams passing through an area other than the exposure pattern area of the illuminated mask on the peripheral areas. The scan type exposure apparatus also has an exposure quantity control unit for setting an exposure quantity for the peripheral areas larger than an exposure quantity for the central area.

Scan type exposure apparatus

In a scanning type exposure apparatus for exposing an entire surface of a pattern region on a mask to a substrate by scanning the mask and the substrate with respect to a projection optical system in a predetermined direction with a speed ratio in accordance with a magnification of the projection optical system, there are provided a plurality of illumination optical systems for illuminating respective areas of the pattern region on the mask with respective light fluxes from respective light source; a plurality of projection optical systems arranged so as to correspond to the respective illumination optical systems, the projection optical systems projecting respective images of the areas illuminated by the respective illumination optical systems onto respective projection areas on the substrate; a memory device for obtaining and storing a change of shape of the substrate; a magnification changing device for changing a magnification of at least one of the projection optical systems in accordance with the change of shape of the substrate; and an imaging position changing device for changing the position of said image projected via the at least one projection optical systems in accordance with the change in magnification.

An exposure apparatus comprises a plurality of illumination optical systems for generating a plurality of light beams, a plurality of projection optical systems disposed corresponding to the plurality of illumination optical systems, respectively, a plurality of light intensity detectors, provided respectively for the plurality of illumination optical systems, for detecting individual intensities of the plurality of light beams, a light intensity changing device for changing the respective intensities of the plurality of light beams, and a control device for controlling the light intensity changing device and uniformizing the intensities of the plurality of light beams to a substantially fixed level.

Multi-beam scanning projection exposure apparatus and method with beam

A scanning light exposure apparatus comprises illumination optical systems for radiating light beams to a plurality of sub-areas in a pattern area of a mask, a plurality of projection optical systems arranged along a predetermined direction for projecting erected images of unity magnification of the sub-areas by the light beams transmitted through the mask onto a photo-sensitive substrate, a diaphragm member arranged at a substantially conjugate position to the photo-sensitive substrate in each illumination optical system for limiting a projection area of the sub-area to the photo-sensitive substrate, scanning means for synchronously scanning said mask and said photo-sensitive substrate substantially transversely to the predetermined direction relative to said projection optical systems and diaphragm control means for changing a width of an aperture of each diaphragm member along a direction transverse to the predetermined direction.

Scanning light exposure apparatus

A light source device houses a lamp such as a mercury discharge tube for generating a high temperature heat, and a reflective optical member such as an elliptic, mirror surrounding the lamp, in a lamp case. When the lamp is forcibly cooled by air, a device for substantially uniformly heating or heat-insulating a reflection surface of the reflective optical member is provided to prevent overcooling of the reflective optical member.

Illumination light source device

An apparatus for positioning a planar substrate on a plane relative to a stage comprises means for supporting the substrate on the plane, the supporting means being provided on the stage for rotation about an axis perpendicular to the plane, first drive means for moving the substrate relative to the supporting means in a predetermined direction along the plane, a reference member disposed on the stage and having a reference surface intersecting the plane, the reference member having a position in which the reference surface is opposed to the substrate moved in the predetermined position so that the reference surface is brought into contact with the circumferential end of the substrate moved by the first drive means to thereby position the substrate, and a biased position in which the reference surface is biased away from the circumferential end of the substrate from the opposed position, and second drive means for displacing the reference member between the opposed position and the biased position.

Substrate positioning apparatus

Growing community of inventors

Tokyo, Japan

Tsuyoshi Naraki