The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Oct. 02, 2012
Filed:
May. 20, 2009
Dirk Heinrich Ehm, Lauchheim, DE;
Johannes Hubertus Josephina Moors, Helmond, NL;
Bastiaan Theodoor Wolschrijn, Abcoude, NL;
Vadim Banine, Helmond, NL;
Vladimir Vitalevitsch Ivanov, Moscow, RU;
Dirk Heinrich Ehm, Lauchheim, DE;
Johannes Hubertus Josephina Moors, Helmond, NL;
Bastiaan Theodoor Wolschrijn, Abcoude, NL;
Vadim Banine, Helmond, NL;
Vladimir Vitalevitsch Ivanov, Moscow, RU;
Carl Zeiss SMT GmbH, Oberkochen, DE;
ASML Netherlands B.V., Veldhoven, NL;
Abstract
A method and an optical arrangement for removing contamination on optical surfaces (), which are arranged in a vacuum environment in an optical arrangement, preferably in a projection exposure apparatus () for EUV lithography. The method includes generating a residual gas atmosphere containing molecular hydrogen () and at least one inert gas () in the vacuum environment, generating inert gas ions () by ionization of the inert gas (), preferably with EUV radiation (), and generating atomic hydrogen () by acceleration of the inert gas ions () in the residual gas atmosphere, to remove the contamination.