Optical system for transforming numerical aperture
AssigneeASML Holding N.V.
InventorsLev Ryzhikov, Yuli Vladmirksy
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system and method are used to form illumination light beams having desirable divergence and directivity. The illumination light beams are shaped using a pupil defining element and a field defining element. Then, divergence or numerical apertures of the light generated by these elements is modified using an optical element that either re-images the light onto planes conjugate to one or both of the pupil defining element and a field defining element or transforms a numerical aperture of light produced by one or both of the pupil defining element and a field defining element.
Claims24
An optical system, comprising:
- an optical element that receives a beam and generates a plurality of beams therefrom;
- and
- an multiple aperture optical device that receives the plurality of beams and re-images the plurality of beams onto an image plane, which is conjugate to the optical element, to create a plurality of corresponding beams, each of the plurality of corresponding beams having a numerical aperture that is less than a numerical aperture of each of the plurality of beams.
An optical system, comprising:
- an optical element that receives a beam and generates a first set of beamlets therefrom, the first set of beamlets having a first numerical aperture;
- and
- a numerical aperture transformation device that receives the first set of beamlets and generates a second set of beamlets therefrom, each of the second set of beamlets having a second numerical aperture that is less than the first numerical aperture.
A method, comprising:
- forming a first plurality of beams having a first numerical aperture from a beam of radiation;
- and
- transforming the first plurality of beams having the first numerical aperture into a second plurality of beams each having a second numerical aperture, each of the second numerical apertures being less than the first numerical apertures.
A method, comprising:
- forming a plurality of beams from a beam of radiation using an optical device;
- and
- re-imaging, either individually or as a group, the first plurality of beams onto an image plane that is conjugate to the optical device,
- wherein double telecentricity is maintained during the re-imaging step.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.