Lithographic apparatus and device manufacturing method

• US 20070263269A1
• Filed: 05/15/2006
• Published: 11/15/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 05/15/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ASML Netherlands BV (ASML Holding NV)
• Original Assignee: ASML Netherlands BV (ASML Holding NV)
• Inventors: Flagello, Donis
• Granted Patent: US 7,952,803 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 359/35
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70158 Diffractive optical elements
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70258 Projection system adjustments, e.g. adjustments during exposure or alignment during assembly of projection system
• 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 7/70341 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 7/70408 Interferometric lithography; Holographic lithography; Self-imaging lithography, e.g. utilizing the Talbot effect

Abstract

A lithographic apparatus includes a first diffraction grating configured to create a first plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams and a second diffraction grating configured to receive at least a portion of the first plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams and to create, based on the first plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams, a second plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams. The apparatus also includes a beam combiner adapted to redirect and combine at least a portion of the second plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams onto a surface of a substrate to form an interference pattern.

Claims

1. A lithographic apparatus comprising:

a first beam splitter configured to create a first plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams;

a second beam splitter configured to receive at least a portion of the first plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams and to create, based on the first plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams, a second plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams; and

a beam combiner adapted to redirect and combine at least a portion of the second plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams onto a surface of a substrate to form an interference pattern.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first and second beam splitters are diffraction gratings.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein each of the diffraction gratings is an alternating phase shift grating or a binary grating.

4. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein each of the diffraction gratings is a one dimensional or a two dimensional grating.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the portion of the first plurality of spatially coherent beams provides an off-axis illumination for the second beam splitter.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a radiation transfer device that is adapted to redirect the portion of the first plurality of radiation beams toward the second beam splitter.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the radiation transfer device includes a glass rod, a lens or a mirror.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the beam combiner is a multi-faceted prism.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the portion of the second plurality of spatially coherent beams includes 2, 3, 4, 6 or 8 beams.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a phase plate and/or an attenuator to modify the phase and/or amplitude of one or more beams of the second plurality of spatially coherent beams.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a magnification system arranged between the second beam splitter and the beam combiner.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a liquid supply system arranged to provide liquid between a surface of the beam combiner and the surface of the substrate.

13. A lithographic apparatus comprising:

a first diffraction grating configured to create a first plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams;

a second diffraction grating configured to receive at least a portion of the first plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams and to create, based on the first plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams, a second plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams;

a radiation transfer device arranged between the first and the second diffraction gratings, the radiation transfer device configured to redirect the portion of the first plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams towards the second diffraction grating such that the first plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams form a coherent off-axis illumination for the second diffraction grating; and

a beam combiner adapted to redirect and combine at least a portion of the second plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams onto a surface of a substrate to form an interference pattern.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein each of the first and second diffraction gratings is an alternating phase shift grating or a binary grating.

15. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein each of the first and second diffraction gratings is a one dimensional or a two dimensional grating.

16. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the portion of the first plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams form illumination poles that are substantially equidistant from an optical axis of said lithographic apparatus.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the illumination poles are aligned along two substantially perpendicular directions in a plane that is substantially perpendicular to the optical axis.

18. A device manufacturing method comprising:

illuminating a first diffraction grating with a beam of radiation so as to form a first plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams;

illuminating a second diffraction grating with at least a portion of the first plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams so as to form a second plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams; and

redirecting and combining at least a portion of the second plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams onto a surface of a substrate so as to form an interference pattern.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein illuminating the second diffraction grating includes redirecting the portion of the first plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams formed by the first diffraction grating toward the second diffraction grating.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the portion of the first plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams is redirected toward the second diffraction grating so as to form an off-axis illumination for the second diffraction grating.

21. The method of claim 18, wherein each of the first and second diffraction gratings is an alternating phase shift grating or a binary grating.

22. The method of claim 18, wherein each of the first and second diffraction gratings is a one dimensional or a two dimensional grating.

23. The method of claim 18, wherein the portion of the second plurality of spatially coherent radiation beams includes 2, 3, 4, 6 or 8 beams.

24. A method for configuring an optical transfer of a pattern onto a substrate, the pattern including a periodic pattern and a non-periodic pattern, the method comprising:

forming a first and a second sub-layout with, respectively, the periodic and non-periodic patterns of the pattern;

transferring an image of the first sub-layout onto the substrate with an interferometric lithographic apparatus; and

transferring the second sub-layout to the substrate without an interferometric lithographic apparatus.

25. A lithographic apparatus comprising:

a beam splitter configured to create at least four spatially coherent radiation beams that propagate in different directions; and

a beam combiner configured to redirect and combine the at least four spatially coherent radiation beams that propagate in different directions onto a surface of a substrate so as to form an interference pattern.

26. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein two of the different directions extend, in a first plane and another two of the different directions extend in a second plane, the first plane being substantially perpendicular to the second plane.