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US 10,345,121 B2Granted
Measuring apparatus and method, processing apparatus and method, pattern forming apparatus and method, exposure apparatus and method, and device manufacturing method
AssigneeNikon Corporation
InventorYuichi Shibazaki
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Position information of a movable body within an XY plane is measured with high accuracy by an encoder system whose measurement values have favorable short-term stability, without being affected by air fluctuations, and also position information of the movable body in a Z-axis direction orthogonal to the XY plane is measured with high accuracy by a surface position measuring system, without being affected by air fluctuations. In this case, since both of the encoder system and the surface position measuring system directly measure the upper surface of the movable body, simple and direct position control of the movable body can be performed.
Claims31
An exposure apparatus that exposes a substrate with an illumination light via a liquid, the apparatus comprising:
- a projection optical system through which the illumination light passes, the projection optical system having a plurality of optical elements held in a barrel, and the plurality of optical elements including a lens disposed closest to an image plane side of the projection optical system, and a mirror;
- an adjustment device that moves a movable optical element of the plurality of optical elements;
- a nozzle member provided to surround the lens and having a lower surface to which the substrate is placed facing, the nozzle member locally forming a liquid immersion area with the liquid under the lens;
- a mask stage system having a first stage that is disposed above the projection optical system and holds a mask illuminated with the illumination light, and a first drive system that has a first motor to drive the first stage;
- a base member disposed below the nozzle member;
- a substrate stage system having a second stage and a third stage that are disposed on the base member and a second drive system that has a second motor to drive the second and the third stages, wherein
- the second stage has a holder to hold the substrate, and holds the substrate in a recessed portion, in which the holder is disposed, of an upper surface of the second stage, and
- the third stage has at least one measurement member that detects the illumination light via the projection optical system and the liquid of the liquid immersion area;
- a measurement system having a first measurement device and a second measurement device that measure positional information of the first stage and positional information of the second stage, respectively, wherein
- the second measurement device irradiates a grating section having a plurality of scale members disposed substantially parallel to a predetermined plane, with a plurality of measurement beams, and measures positional information of the second stage in directions of three degrees of freedom within the predetermined plane including a first direction and a second direction orthogonal to each other within the predetermined plane, and in a third direction orthogonal to the predetermined plane, the plurality of scale members each having a reflective grating that is periodic in a direction parallel to the predetermined plane, and the predetermined plane being orthogonal to an optical axis of the projection optical system;
- a detection device that is disposed on one side in the first direction with respect to the projection optical system, spaced apart from the projection optical system, and detects positional information of the substrate in the third direction;
- and
- a controller coupled to the adjustment device and the detection device, that controls the adjustment device to adjust an optical property of the projection optical system, and controls the first and the second drive systems based on measurement information of the first and the second measurement devices so that, in an exposure operation of the substrate, scanning exposure in which the mask and the substrate are each moved relative to the illumination light is performed with the first direction serving as a scanning direction, via the projection optical system and the liquid of the liquid immersion area,
- wherein the controller:
- controls the second drive system so that the third stage is placed to face the projection optical system and the substrate held by the second stage is detected by the detection device;
- controls the second drive system so that the second stage is moved from the one side in the first direction with respect to the third stage in order to cause the second stage to come close to the third stage placed facing the projection optical system, and so that the second and the third stages that have come close together are moved from the one side to the other side in the first direction in order to place the second stage to face the projection optical system instead of the third stage while substantially maintaining the liquid immersion area under the lens;
- and
- controls the second drive system so that focus-levelling control of a pattern image of the mask, that is projected via the projection optical system and the liquid of the liquid immersion area, and the substrate is performed based on detection information of the detection device, during the scanning exposure, and
- wherein, in the exposure operation, the substrate is placed to face the lower surface of the nozzle member by the second stage, and the measurement beam is irradiated on each of at least three scale members of the plurality of scale members, by the second measurement device.
16 more elements
An exposure method of exposing a substrate with an illumination light via a liquid, the method comprising:
- locally forming a liquid immersion area with the liquid under a lens disposed closest to an image plane side of a projection optical system, by a nozzle member provided to surround the lens and having a lower surface to which the substrate is placed facing, the illumination light passing through the projection optical system, the projection optical system having a plurality of optical elements including the lens and a mirror, and the plurality of optical elements being held in a barrel;
- holding a mask illuminated with the illumination light, with a first stage disposed above the projection optical system;
- of a second stage and a third stage that are disposed on a base member below the nozzle member, placing the third stage to face the projection optical system, wherein
- the second stage has a holder to hold the substrate, and holds the substrate in a recessed portion, in which the holder is disposed, of an upper surface of the second stage, and
- the third stage has at least one measurement member that detects the illumination light via the projection optical system and the liquid of the liquid immersion area;
- measuring positional information of the first stage with a first measurement device and positional information of the second stage with a second measurement device, wherein
- the second measurement device irradiates a grating section having a plurality of scale members disposed substantially parallel to a predetermined plane, with a plurality of measurement beams, and measures positional information of the second stage in directions of three degrees of freedom within the predetermined plane including a first direction and a second direction orthogonal to each other within the predetermined plane, and in a third direction orthogonal to the predetermined plane, the plurality of scale members each having a reflective grating that is periodic in a direction parallel to the predetermined plane, and the predetermined plane being orthogonal to an optical axis of the projection optical system;
- detecting positional information in the third direction of the substrate held by the second stage, with a detection device that is disposed on one side in the first direction with respect to the projection optical system, spaced apart from the projection optical system;
- moving the second stage from the one side in the first direction with respect to the third stage so that the second stage comes close to the third stage placed facing the projection optical system;
- moving the second and the third stages that have come close together from the one side to the other side in the first direction so that the second stage is placed to face the projection optical system instead of the third stage while substantially maintaining the liquid immersion area under the lens;
- moving a movable optical element of the plurality of optical elements so that an optical property of the projection optical system is adjusted;
- and
- moving the first and the second stages so that, in an exposure operation of the substrate held by the second stage, scanning exposure in which the mask and the substrate are each moved relative to the illumination light is performed with the first direction serving as a scanning direction, via the projection optical system and the liquid of the liquid immersion area,
- wherein, in the exposure operation, the substrate is placed to face the lower surface of the nozzle member by the second stage, and the measurement beam is irradiated on each of at least three scale members of the plurality of scale members, by the second measurement device, and during the scanning exposure, the second stage is moved based on measurement information of the second measurement device so that focus-levelling control of a pattern image of the mask, that is projected via the projection optical system and the liquid of the liquid immersion area, and the substrate is performed based on detection information of the detection device.
11 more elements
A making method of an exposure apparatus that exposes a substrate with an illumination light via a liquid, the method comprising:
- providing a projection optical system through which the illumination light passes, the projection optical system having a plurality of optical elements held in a barrel, and the plurality of optical elements including a lens disposed closest to an image plane side of the projection optical system, and a mirror;
- providing an adjustment device that moves a movable optical element of the plurality of optical elements;
- providing a nozzle member provided to surround the lens and having a lower surface to which the substrate is placed facing, the nozzle member locally forming a liquid immersion area with the liquid under the lens;
- providing a mask stage system having a first stage that is disposed above the projection optical system and holds a mask illuminated with the illumination light, and a first drive system that has a first motor to drive the first stage;
- providing a base member disposed below the nozzle member;
- providing a substrate stage system having a second stage and a third stage that are disposed on the base member and a second drive system that has a second motor to drive the second and the third stages, wherein
- the second stage has a holder to hold the substrate, and holds the substrate in a recessed portion, in which the holder is disposed, of an upper surface of the second stage, and
- the third stage has at least one measurement member that detects the illumination light via the projection optical system and the liquid of the liquid immersion area;
- providing a measurement system having a first measurement device and a second measurement device that measure positional information of the first stage and positional information of the second stage, respectively, wherein
- the second measurement device irradiates a grating section having a plurality of scale members disposed substantially parallel to a predetermined plane, with a plurality of measurement beams, and measures positional information of the second stage in directions of three degrees of freedom within the predetermined plane including a first direction and a second direction orthogonal to each other within the predetermined plane, and in a third direction orthogonal to the predetermined plane, the plurality of scale members each having a reflective grating that is periodic in a direction parallel to the predetermined plane, and the predetermined plane being orthogonal to an optical axis of the projection optical system;
- providing a detection device that is disposed on one side in the first direction with respect to the projection optical system, spaced apart from the projection optical system, and detects positional information of the substrate in the third direction;
- and
- providing a controller coupled to the adjustment device and the detection device, that controls the adjustment device to adjust an optical property of the projection optical system, and controls the first and the second drive systems based on measurement information of the first and the second measurement devices so that, in an exposure operation of the substrate, scanning exposure in which the mask and the substrate are each moved relative to the illumination light is performed with the first direction serving as a scanning direction, via the projection optical system and the liquid of the liquid immersion area,
- wherein the controller:
- controls the second drive system so that the third stage is placed to face the projection optical system and the substrate held by the second stage is detected by the detection device;
- controls the second drive system so that the second stage is moved from the one side in the first direction with respect to the third stage in order to cause the second stage to come close to the third stage placed facing the projection optical system, and so that the second and the third stages that have come close together are moved from the one side to the other side in the first direction in order to place the second stage to face the projection optical system instead of the third stage while substantially maintaining the liquid immersion area under the lens;
- and
- controls the second drive system so that focus-levelling control of a pattern image of the mask, that is projected via the projection optical system and the liquid of the liquid immersion area, and the substrate is performed based on detection information of the detection device, during the scanning exposure, and
- wherein, in the exposure operation, the substrate is placed to face the lower surface of the nozzle member by the second stage, and the measurement beam is irradiated on each of at least three scale members of the plurality of scale members, by the second measurement device.
16 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.