Projection exposure method and projection exposure apparatus for microlithography

A projection exposure apparatus for exposing a radiation-sensitive substrate with at least one image of a pattern of a mask, comprising:

• an illumination system configured to receive primary radiation of a primary radiation source and to generate an illumination radiation directed onto a pattern of an object in an illumination region;
• a projection lens configured to project a part of the pattern that lies in the illumination region onto an image field at a substrate with projection radiation;
• an operating control system configured to control the operation of the projection exposure apparatus;
• and
• a wavefront manipulation system configured to dynamically influence the wavefront of the projection radiation travelling from the object plane to the image plane,
• wherein:
• the wavefront manipulation system comprises a manipulator which is actuatable via control signals of the operating control system;
• the manipulator comprises a manipulator surface in the projection beam path and an actuating device configured to reversibly change an optical effect of the manipulator surface;
• telecentricity sensitivities of manipulators for varying the telecentricity are storable in a memory of the operating control system;
• a telecentricity sensitivity describes a relationship between a defined manipulated value change at a manipulator and an effect achieved thereby on the telecentricity of the projection lens;
• and
• the operating control system is configured so that operation of the projection exposure apparatus is controllable taking account of the telecentricity sensitivities.

A projection lens, comprising:

• a multiplicity of optical elements with optical surfaces are arranged in a projection beam path between an object plane and an image plane so that a pattern in the object plane is imageable in the image plane via the optical elements;
• and
• a wavefront manipulation system configured to dynamically influence a wavefront of projection radiation travelling from the object plane to the image plane,
• wherein:
• the projection lens comprises a dedicated telecentricity manipulator;
• the dedicated telecentricity manipulator comprises a first manipulator element and a second manipulator element separate from the first manipulator element;
• the first manipulator element is in the projection beam path in or optically near a first field plane;
• the second manipulator element is arranged in the projection beam path in or optically near a second field plane optically conjugate to the first field plane;
• the projection lens comprises an imaging lens part having a magnifying or reducing imaging scale arranged between the first field plane and the second field plane;
• and
• the projection lens comprises an actuating device assigned to the first and second manipulator elements configured to bring about a relative change of the first and second manipulator elements with respect to one another in such a way that one of the manipulator elements brings about a change in telecentricity, distortion and defocus and the other manipulator element partly or completely compensates for the caused change in distortion and defocus.