Exposure apparatus and device manufacturing method

• US 20070216884A1
• Filed: 03/14/2007
• Published: 09/20/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/17/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Inventors: Nagasaka, Hiroyuki
• Granted Patent: US 8,982,322 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 355/53
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 27/42 for automatic sequential copying of the same original G03B27/34, G03B27/53 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70283 Mask effects on the imaging process
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70466 Multiple exposures, e.g. combination of fine and coarse exposures, double patterning or multiple exposures for printing a single feature stitching G03F7/70475

Abstract

An exposure apparatus provided with an optical system that has one optical element to which at least two of three or more exposure lights are guided, and that is capable of irradiating three or more exposure lights onto exposure fields that respectively correspond to the exposure lights, with the exposure apparatus multiply exposing a predetermined field on a substrate with images of a plurality of patterns that are formed based on the three or more exposure lights that are respectively irradiated onto the three or more exposure fields.

Claims

1. An exposure apparatus that exposes a substrate, comprising:

an optical system that has one optical element to which at least two of three or more exposure lights are guided, and that irradiates three or more exposure fields with the three or more exposure lights,

wherein a predetermined field on the substrate is multiply exposed by images of a plurality of patterns that are formed on the three or more exposure fields.

2. An exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein all of the three or more exposure lights are guided to the one optical element.

3. An exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the one optical element faces the surface of the substrate.

4. An exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the optical system includes a combining optical element that combines at least two exposure lights of the three or more exposure lights.

5. An exposure apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the optical system has a first combining optical element and a second combining optical element.

6. An exposure apparatus according to claim 5, wherein

the optical system has a first reflecting surface that is disposed in a first light path that is the light path of exposure lights from the first combining optical element, and a second reflecting surface that is disposed in a second light path that is the light path of exposure lights from the second combining optical element, and

the exposure light that travels along the first light path, by passing the first reflecting surface, is guided to the one optical element, and the exposure light that travels along the second light path, by passing the second reflecting surface, is guided to the one optical element.

7. An exposure apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the first reflecting surface and the second reflecting surface are at a position, or in the vicinity thereof, that is optically conjugate with the exposure fields.

8. An exposure apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the optical system has a first optical system that guides a first exposure light to the first combining optical element, a second optical system that guides a second exposure light to the first combining optical element, a third optical system that guides a third exposure light to the second combining optical element, and a fourth optical system that guides a fourth exposure light to the second combining optical element.

9. An exposure apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the first exposure light, the second exposure light, the third exposure light, and the fourth exposure light respectively include exposure light from a first pattern, a second pattern, a third pattern, and a fourth pattern that mutually differ.

10. An exposure apparatus according to claim 8, wherein at least one of the first exposure light, the second exposure light, the third exposure light, and the fourth exposure light includes exposure light from a third combining optical element that is different from the first combining optical element and the second combining optical element.

11. An exposure according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined field on the substrate is multiply exposed while relatively moving the plurality of exposure fields and the predetermined field on the substrate in a predetermined scanning direction.

12. An exposure apparatus according to claim 11, wherein at least two exposure fields of the plurality of exposure fields are separated in the predetermined direction.

13. An exposure apparatus according to claim 11, wherein at least two exposure fields of the plurality of exposure fields are partially overlapped in relation to the predetermined direction.

14. An exposure apparatus according to claim 1, comprising:

a first moving device that is capable of moving a plurality of masks having respective patterns in predetermined scanning directions with respect to the exposure lights,

a second moving device that is capable of moving the predetermined field on the substrate in a predetermined scanning direction with respect to the exposure fields,

wherein the predetermined field on the substrate is multiply exposed while moving the predetermined field on the substrate with the second moving device in the scanning direction in synchronous with the movement in the respective scanning directions of the plurality of masks by the first moving device.

15. A device manufacturing method that uses the exposure apparatus according to claim 1.