Electrode insulator materials for use in extreme ultraviolet electric discharge sources
OwnerMelissa Shell, Bryan J. Riceinventors
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An insulator may be operable to electrically insulate a cathode from an anode in an extreme ultraviolet (EUV) source of an EUV lithography tool. The insulator may be made of an aluminosilicate or a SiN/SiC material. The extreme ultraviolet source may be operable to produce a plasma which emits extreme ultraviolet radiation.
Claims27
An apparatus comprising:
- an extreme ultraviolet source having an anode, a cathode, and an aluminosilicate insulator collar positioned to electrically insulate the cathode from the anode, the aluminosilicate insulator collar having a first hollow cylindrical part and a second hollow cylindrical part, the first cylindrical part having a smaller diameter than the second cylindrical part, the anode fitting through the first and second cylindrical parts, the extreme ultraviolet source being operable to produce a plasma which emits extreme ultraviolet radiation.
An apparatus comprising:
- an extreme ultraviolet source having an anode, a cathode, and an In Situ Reinforced Barium Aluminosilicate (IRBAS) insulator collar positioned to electrically insulate the cathode from the anode, the extreme ultraviolet source being operable to produce a plasma which emits extreme ultraviolet radiation, wherein the extreme ultraviolet source is a dense plasma focus (DPF) electric discharge extreme ultraviolet source.
An apparatus comprising:
- an extreme ultraviolet source having an anode, a cathode, and an In Situ Reinforced Barium Aluminosilicate (IRBAS) insulator positioned to electrically insulate the cathode from the anode, the extreme ultraviolet source being operable to produce a plasma which emits extreme ultraviolet radiation, wherein the extreme ultraviolet source is a laser produced plasma (LPP) source.
An apparatus comprising an extreme ultraviolet source having a Nitroxyceram insulator collar positioned to electrically insulate a cathode from an anode, the extreme ultraviolet source being operable to produce a plasma which emits extreme ultraviolet radiation.
An insulator positioned to electrically insulate a cathode from an anode, the insulator having a first hollow cylindrical part and a second hollow cylindrical part, the first cylindrical part having a smaller diameter than the second cylindrical part, the first and second cylindrical parts being shaped to receive the anode, the insulator having a melting temperature above 2000 degrees Centigrade, a thermal conductivity of about 25 Watts/meter*Kelvin and a dielectric constant of about 5.7.
A method comprising:
- insulating a first portion of a cathode from a first portion of an anode with at least one of a Nitroxyceram insulator and an in-situ reinforced barium aluminosilicate (IRBAS) insulator;
- providing a source gas through the anode;
- providing a buffer gas between a second portion of the anode and a second portion of the cathode;
- and
- forming a plasma proximate to the anode with the source gas, the buffer-gas and an electric current, the plasma emitting extreme ultraviolet radiation.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.