Polarization-modulating element, illumination optical apparatus, exposure apparatus, and exposure method

• US 10,007,194 B2
• Filed: 10/29/2008
• Issued: 06/26/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 02/06/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Inventors: Tanitsu, Osamu, Shigematsu, Koji, Hirota, Hiroyuki, Matsuyama, Tomoyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Lapage, Michael P
• Application Number:
  US12/289,515
• Publication Number:
  US 20090073441A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,527 Days
• Field of Search: 356364-370
• CPC Class Codes: F21V 13/02 Combinations of only two kinds of elements
• CPC Class Codes: F21V 9/14 for producing polarised light
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0977 Reflective elements
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/286 for controlling or changing the state of polarisation, e.g. transforming one polarisation state into another G02B5/3083 takes precedence; light guide coupling means utilising polarising elements G02B6/34
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 5/3025 Polarisers, i.e. arrangements capable of producing a definite output polarisation state from an unpolarised input state G02B5/3008, G02B5/3016 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/701 Off-axis setting using an aperture
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70191 Optical correction elements, filters or phase plates for controlling intensity, wavelength, polarisation, phase or the like
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70308 Optical correction elements, filters or phase plates for manipulating imaging light, e.g. intensity, wavelength, polarisation, phase or image shift
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70566 Polarisation control

Abstract

There is disclosed a polarization-modulating element for modulating a polarization state of incident light into a predetermined polarization state, the polarization-modulating element being made of an optical material with optical activity and having a circumferentially varying thickness profile.

Claims

1. An exposure apparatus that transcribes a pattern on a first surface onto a substrate arranged on a second surface, the exposure apparatus comprising:

an illumination optical apparatus which illuminates the pattern with a beam, and which comprises a plurality of optical elements, a polarization-modulating element and a fly'"'"'s eye lens as an optical integrator, the polarization-modulating element and the plurality of optical elements being located on an incidence side of the fly'"'"'s eye lens in an optical path of the beam, and

a polarization monitor that detects a degree of polarization of the beam, the polarization monitor comprising;

a beam splitter arranged in the optical path, which takes out a part of the beam;

a detector which detects the part of the beam arriving from the beam splitter,

wherein the beam splitter is arranged downstream, in the optical path, of a pupil plane located on or near a rear focal plane of the fly'"'"'s eye lens,

the plurality of optical elements transforms the beam to form a light intensity distribution of the beam on the pupil plane by moving the plurality of optical elements relative to each other,

the polarization-modulating element is made of an optical material with optical activity, and has a thickness profile in which a thickness of the optical material varies with respect to an azimuthal direction about an optical axis of the illumination optical apparatus,

the polarization-modulating element is arranged so that a direction of an optic axis of the optical material is substantially coincident with a direction of the optical axis, and

the polarization-modulating element rotates a polarization direction of the beam by the optical activity of the optical material based on the thickness profile and forms a linearly polarized state of the beam on the pupil plane, the linearly polarized state having polarization directions being substantially coincident with the azimuthal direction about the optical axis or a radial direction centered around the optical axis.

2. A device manufacturing method comprising:

transcribing a pattern onto a substrate with the exposure apparatus according to claim 1, and

developing the substrate onto which the pattern has been transcribed with the exposure apparatus.

3. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a stage which holds the substrate; and

a projection optical system which is arranged between the first surface and the second surface and which projects an image of the pattern, illuminated with the beam from the illumination optical apparatus, onto the substrate held by the stage.

4. The exposure apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising a pinhole member having a pinhole, wherein the detector detects the part of the beam via the pinhole.

5. The exposure apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising a lens, wherein the detector detects the part of the beam arriving from the pinhole via the lens.

6. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a first thickness of the polarization-modulating element in an optical path of a first part of the beam is different from a second thickness of the polarization-modulating element in an optical path of a second part of the beam, and

the first part of the beam passes through a first portion of the pupil plane away from the optical axis, and the second part of the beam passes through a second portion of the pupil plane away from the optical axis, the first and second portions being different from each other.

7. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an optical system including a lens element arranged in the optical path of the beam from the fly'"'"'s eye lens, the optical system irradiating the pattern with the beam from the fly'"'"'s eye lens in a polarization state in which a principal component is S-polarized light with respect to the pattern.