Exposure apparatus, exposure method and process for producing device

An exposure apparatus using an exposure beam to illuminate a substrate through a mask and a projection optical system and making an illumination area of the exposure beam relatively scan the substrate so as to transfer an image of a pattern on the mask onto the substrate, said exposure apparatus comprising:

• a detector that detects positional information along a direction of an optical axis of the projection optical system at a plurality of measurement points set at positions in a predetermined relationship with respect to the illumination area, and
• a posture controller, connected to said detector, that controls a posture of the substrate with respect to an image plane of the projection optical system based on the positional information during the scanning exposure,
• the posture controller includes a switching device that switches between a first control for performing only focusing control for adjusting a position of said substrate in the direction of the optical axis of the projection optical system and a second control for performing both focusing control and leveling control for adjusting a tilt condition of said substrate based on a relative positional relationship between the plurality of measurement points and the substrate during the scanning exposure.

An exposure method making a mask and a substrate move synchronously with respect to a projection optical system so as to make an illumination area of an exposure beam passing through the projection optical system relatively scan a shot area on the substrate to expose the shot area, comprising:

• making said illumination area of the exposure beam relatively scan a shot area positioned at a periphery of the substrate from the outside of the substrate to the inside,
• starting, during scanning exposure operation for the shot area, only focusing control for adjusting a position of said substrate in a direction of an optical axis of the projection optical system when a measurement point of a plurality of measurement points for detection of positional information of the substrate in the direction of the optical axis of the projection optical system is positioned inside an effective area of the substrate, and
• starting, during the scanning exposure operation for the shot area, additionally leveling control for adjusting a tilt condition of said substrate when a plurality of measurement points that is less than all of the measurement points is positioned inside the effective area of the substrate.

An exposure method using an exposure beam to illuminate a substrate through a mask and a projection optical system and making an illumination area of the exposure beam relatively scan the substrate so as to transfer an image of a pattern on the mask onto the substrate, said method comprising the steps of:

• detecting positional information along a direction of an optical axis of the projection optical system at a plurality of measurement points set at positions in a predetermined relationship with respect to the illumination area, and
• controlling a posture of the substrate with respect to an image plane of the projection optical system based on the positional information during the scanning exposure,
• the step of controlling the posture including a step of switching between a first control for performing only focusing control for adjusting a position of the substrate in the direction of the optical axis of the projection optical system and a second control for performing both focusing control and leveling control for adjusting a tilt condition of the substrate based on relative positional relationship between the plurality of measurement points and the substrate during the scanning exposure.

A process for production of an exposure apparatus for making a mask and a substrate move synchronously with respect to a projection optical system so as to transfer an image of a pattern formed on the mask on to the substrate, comprising the steps of;

• providing a sensor that detects positional information of the substrate in a direction of an optical axis of the projection optical system at a plurality of measurement points,
• providing an adjusting device, connected to said sensor, that adjusts a position of the substrate in the direction of the optical axis by focusing control and a tilt condition of the substrate by leveling control based on a result of detection of said sensor, and
• providing a control switching device, connected to said adjusting device, that switches control while the image of the pattern is transferred onto the substrate so as to perform only said focusing control since a measurement point of the sensor is positioned inside an effective area of the substrate and so as to additionally perform leveling control when a plurality of measurement points that is less than all of the measurement points is positioned inside the effective area of the substrate.

A process for production of an exposure apparatus using an exposure beam to illuminate a substrate through a mask and a projection optical system and making an illumination area of the exposure beam relatively scan the substrate so as to transfer an image of a pattern on the mask onto the substrate, comprising the steps of:

• providing a detector that detects positional information along a direction of an optical axis of the projection optical system at a plurality of measurement points set at positions in a predetermined relationship with respect to the illumination area, and
• providing a posture controller, connected to said detector, that controls the posture of the substrate with respect to an image plane of the projection optical system based on the positional information during the scanning exposure and includes a switching device that switches between a first control for performing only focusing control for adjusting a position of said substrate in the direction of the optical axis of the projection optical system and a second control for performing both focusing control and leveling control for adjusting a tilt condition of said substrate based on a relative positional relationship between the plurality of measurement points and the substrate during the scanning exposure.