Immersion lithography apparatus and method having movable liquid diverter between immersion liquid confinement member and substrate

An immersion lithography apparatus comprising:

• a substrate holder on which a substrate is held;
• a projection system having a final optical element, the projection system projecting an exposure beam onto the substrate held on the substrate holder through an immersion liquid in a gap between a surface of the substrate and the final optical element during an exposure operation;
• a first member having an opening through which the exposure beam is projected;
• and
• a second member having an opening through which the exposure beam is projected,
• wherein the first and second members are relatively movable in a direction substantially parallel to the surface of the substrate,
• one of the first and second members has a lower surface,
• the lower surface includes a non-fluid removal area that surrounds the opening of the one of the first and second members,
• the other of the first and second members has an upper surface,
• the first and second members are relatively movable while a portion of the upper surface faces the non-fluid removal area in the lower surface,
• the one of the first and second members has a liquid recovery outlet which removes liquid from a gap between the lower surface and the upper surface, and
• the opening of the one of the first and second members is defined by a radially innermost edge of the non-fluid removal area, and at least a part of the upper surface of the other of the first and second members is spaced from the substrate held on the substrate holder by a shortest distance that is less than a shortest distance between the substrate and the radially innermost edge of the non-fluid removal area.