Optical system and method of use
AssigneeCarl Zeiss SMT GmbH
InventorOlaf Conradi
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method for improving imaging properties of an optical system and an optical system of this type having improved imaging properties are described. The optical system can have a plurality of optical elements. In some embodiments, an optical element is positioned and/or deformed by mechanical force action and by thermal action. In certain embodiments, one optical element is positioned and/or deformed by mechanical force action and another optical element is deformed by thermal action.
Claims33
A method of using a semiconductor lithography system comprising a first optical element and a second optical element, the method comprising:
- i) simultaneously using a mechanical force action and thermal action to at least partially correct an imaging aberration of the semiconductor lithography system while using the semiconductor lithography system to expose a wafer to light, wherein i) comprises:
- a) simultaneously applying the mechanical force action and the thermal action to the first optical element, thereby deforming the first optical element;
- or
- b) simultaneously applying the mechanical force action to the first optical element and the thermal action to the second optical element, thereby deforming the first optical element and deforming the second optical element.
A semiconductor lithography system configured to be used in a method to at least partially correct an imaging aberration of the system while using the system to sequentially expose a plurality of dies of a wafer to light, the system comprising:
- a first optical element;
- a second optical element;
- a mechanical manipulator configured to generate a mechanical force to deform the first optical element;
- and
- a thermal manipulator configured to generate to generate a thermal force to:
- a) deform the first optical element;
- or b) deform the second optical element,
- wherein the system is configured to simultaneously generate the mechanical force and the thermal force.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.