Exposure apparatus and method for producing device

• US 20060077367A1
• Filed: 11/22/2005
• Published: 04/13/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 05/23/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Inventors: Mizuno, Yasushi, Tanimoto, Akikazu, Nakano, Katsushi, Kobayashi, Naoyuki, Shiraishi, Kenichi, Owa, Soichi
• Granted Patent: US 7,388,649 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 355/53
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 27/52 Details
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/00 Photomechanical, e.g. photolithographic, production of textured or patterned surfaces, e.g. printing surfaces; Materials therefor, e.g. comprising photoresists; Apparatus specially adapted therefor using photoresist structures for special production processes, see the relevant places, e.g. B44C, H01L, e.g. H01L21/00, H05K
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/2041 in the presence of a fluid, e.g. immersion; using fluid cooling means
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70316 Details of optical elements, e.g. of Bragg reflectors, extreme ultraviolet [EUV] multilayer or bilayer mirrors or diffractive optical elements
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70341 Details of immersion lithography aspects, e.g. exposure media or control of immersion liquid supply chemical composition of immersion liquids G03F7/2041
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70775 Position control, e.g. interferometers or encoders for determining the stage position
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/7085 Detection arrangement, e.g. detectors of apparatus alignment possibly mounted on wafers, exposure dose, photo-cleaning flux, stray light, thermal load
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70916 Pollution mitigation, i.e. mitigating effect of contamination or debris, e.g. foil traps
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70925 Cleaning, i.e. actively freeing apparatus from pollutants, e.g. using plasma cleaning
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70958 Optical materials or coatings, e.g. with particular transmittance, reflectance or anti-reflection properties
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 9/7015 Reference, i.e. alignment of original or workpiece with respect to a reference not on the original or workpiece
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 9/7088 Alignment mark detection, e.g. TTR, TTL, off-axis detection, array detector, video detection
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 9/7096 Arrangement, mounting, housing, environment, cleaning or maintenance of apparatus

Abstract

There is provided an exposure apparatus capable of forming a desirable device pattern by removing unnecessary liquid when performing exposure by projecting a pattern onto the substrate via a projection optical system and the liquid. The exposure device projects an image of the pattern onto the substrate P via the projection optical system and the liquid so as to expose the substrate P. The exposure device includes a liquid removing mechanism 40 which removes the liquid remaining on a part 7 arranged in the vicinity of the image plane of the projection optical system.

Claims

1. An exposure apparatus which projects an image of a pattern onto a substrate through a liquid to expose the substrate therewith, the exposure apparatus comprising:

a projection optical system which projects the image of the pattern onto the substrate; and

a liquid-removing mechanism which removes the liquid remaining on a part arranged in the vicinity of an image plane of the projection optical system.

2. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the liquid-removing mechanism includes a liquid-sucking unit which sucks the liquid adhered to the part.

3. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the liquid-removing mechanism includes a unit which blows a gas against the part.

4. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the part includes a part disposed at an end portion of the projection optical system.

5. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a liquid supply mechanism which supplies the liquid, wherein the part includes a supply nozzle of the liquid supply mechanism.

6. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a liquid recovery mechanism which recovers the liquid, wherein the part includes a recovery nozzle of the liquid recovery mechanism.

7. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the part makes contact with the liquid during the exposure for the substrate.

8. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a stage which is movable on a side of the image plane of the projection optical system.

9. The exposure apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the part includes a part of the stage or a measuring member provided on the stage.

10. The exposure apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the measuring member includes a reference member provided on the stage.

11. The exposure apparatus according to claim 9, further comprising a measuring system including an upper plate which has a light-transmitting portion which transmits an exposure light beam from the projection optical system therethrough, and a light-receiving system which receives the light beam having passed through the light-transmitting portion of the upper plate, wherein the part includes the upper plate of the measuring system.

12. The exposure apparatus according to claim 8, wherein at least a part of the liquid-removing mechanism is provided on the stage.

13. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a surface of the part is liquid-repellent.

14. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the liquid-removing mechanism moves the liquid remaining in a predetermined area on a surface of the part to outside of the predetermined area.

15. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the liquid-removing mechanism removes the liquid by using a clean gas or a dry gas.

16. The exposure apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the clean gas is nitrogen gas.

17. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a washing mechanism which washes the part.

18. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a detection unit which detects a state of a surface of the part.

19. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the liquid-removing mechanism removes the liquid remaining on the part arranged in the vicinity of the image plane of the projection optical system before the exposure or after the exposure.

20. The exposure apparatus according to claim 19, further comprising a liquid recovery mechanism which recovers the liquid from a surface of the substrate during the exposure.

21. The exposure apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the liquid-removing mechanism includes a first liquid-removing mechanism which removes the liquid remaining on the part provided on the stage, and a second liquid-removing mechanism which removes the liquid remaining at an end portion of the projection optical system.

22. The exposure apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the liquid-removing mechanism includes a gas blow nozzle which is provided for the stage and which spouts a gas upwardly from the stage.

23. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a control unit which controls the liquid-removing mechanism, wherein the control unit controls the liquid-removing mechanism to execute liquid removal operation by the liquid-removing mechanism when the substrate is unloaded.

24. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an optical member which makes contact with the liquid in a liquid immersion area, and a focus-detecting system, wherein a light beam, which is radiated from the focus-detecting system, is transmitted through the optical member and the liquid, and the light beam arrives at the substrate.

25. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the liquid-removing mechanism includes a gas-spouting section which is movable in a substrate surface direction.

26. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the liquid-removing mechanism is a unit which is provided with a nozzle which selectively spouts the liquid and a gas.

27. The exposure apparatus according to claim 26, further comprising a liquid supply mechanism which supplies the liquid, and a flow passage-switching unit which switches flow passages for the liquid to be supplied from the liquid supply mechanism and the gas to be supplied from the nozzle of the liquid-removing mechanism.

28. The exposure apparatus according to claim 25, further comprising a liquid-receiving member which is provided with a nozzle which spouts the gas, and an actuator which moves the liquid-receiving member relative to the projection optical system.

29. The exposure apparatus according to claim 25, further comprising a system which selectively applies a positive or negative pressure to the substrate and which is provided for the gas-spouting section.

39. A method for producing a device, comprising using the exposure apparatus as defined in claim 1.

30. An exposure apparatus which exposes a substrate by forming a liquid immersion area on a part of the substrate and projecting an image of a pattern onto the substrate through a liquid in the liquid immersion area, the exposure apparatus comprising:

a projection optical system which projects the image of the pattern onto the substrate;

a substrate stage which is movable while holding the substrate;

a liquid supply mechanism which supplies the liquid onto the substrate to form the liquid immersion area;

a first liquid recovery mechanism which recovers the liquid from a surface of the substrate; and

a second liquid recovery mechanism which has a recovery port provided on the substrate stage and which recovers the liquid after completion of the exposure for the substrate.

31. The exposure apparatus according to claim 30, wherein both of the first and second liquid recovery mechanisms recover the liquid after the completion of the exposure for the substrate.

32. The exposure apparatus according to claim 30, wherein the first liquid recovery mechanism recovers the liquid simultaneously with the supply of the liquid by the liquid supply mechanism to form the liquid immersion area during the exposure for the substrate.

33. The exposure apparatus according to claim 30, wherein the second liquid recovery mechanism recovers the liquid outflowed to outside of the substrate during the exposure for the substrate.

34. The exposure apparatus according to claim 30, further comprising a liquid-removing mechanism which is different from the first and second liquid recovery mechanisms.

40. A method for producing a device, comprising using the exposure apparatus as defined in claim 30.

35. An exposure apparatus which exposes a substrate by projecting an image of a pattern onto the substrate through a liquid, the exposure apparatus comprising:

a projection optical system which projects the image of the pattern onto the substrate; and

a detection unit which detects a state of a surface of a part arranged in the vicinity of an image plane side of the projection optical system.

36. The exposure apparatus according to claim 35, wherein the detection unit detects a foreign matter adhered to the surface of the part.

37. The exposure apparatus according to claim 35, wherein the surface of the part includes a surface of an optical element disposed most closely to the image plane side of the projection optical system.

38. The exposure apparatus according to claim 37, further comprising a washing unit which washes the surface of the optical element, and a control unit which controls the washing unit, wherein the control unit operates the washing unit in response to a result of the detection performed by the detection unit.

41. A method for producing a device, comprising using the exposure apparatus as defined in claim 35.