Exposure Apparatus and Device Producing Method

• US 20080018866A1
• Filed: 04/14/2005
• Published: 01/24/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 04/19/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Inventors: Kohno, Hirotaka, Nagasaka, Hiroyuki, Nishii, Yasufumi
• Granted Patent: US 8,488,099 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 355/30
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/2041 in the presence of a fluid, e.g. immersion; using fluid cooling means
• 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

Abstract

An exposure apparatus is provided that performs well a liquid supply operation for forming a liquid immersion region and a liquid recovery operation to form a liquid immersion region in a desired state, thereby allowing high exposure accuracy and high measurement accuracy. The exposure apparatus (EX) exposes a substrate (P) by irradiating exposure light (EL) onto the substrate (P) via a liquid (LQ), and includes a liquid supply mechanism (10) that has a supply port (13) capable of supplying the liquid (LQ) substantially in parallel with a surface of the substrate (P).

Claims

1. An exposure apparatus that exposes a substrate by irradiating exposure light onto the substrate via a projection optical system and a liquid, comprising:

a liquid supply mechanism having a supply port from which the liquid flows substantially in parallel with a surface of the substrate located on an image plane side of the projection optical system and which supplies the liquid to the image plane side of the projection optical system.

2. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the supply port is provided so as to perform a liquid supply onto the substrate from above the substrate at a position spaced a predetermined distance apart.

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

a wall portion that has an inner side surface formed in the vicinity of the supply port so as to substantially orthogonally intersect the surface of the substrate located on the image plane side of the projection optical system, wherein

the supply port supplies the liquid so as to flow toward the inner side surface of the wall portion.

4. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the supply port supplies the liquid so that a swirling current is formed.

5. The exposure apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising:

a suction port formed near a center of the swirling current.

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

a suction port provided in the vicinity of the projection optical system.

7. The exposure apparatus according to claim 5, wherein

a mixing of a gas into a liquid on the image plane side of the projection optical system is prevented by performing an exhaust from the suction port.

8. The exposure apparatus according to claim 5, wherein

the suction port is provided, in the vicinity of the projection optical system, at a position higher than the end surface of the projection optical system in the vertical direction.

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

a first surface that includes an end surface of the projection optical system and that comes into contact with the liquid; and

a second surface that is provided so as to surround the first surface and that comes into contact with the liquid, wherein

a contact angle of the liquid on the first surface is smaller than a contact angle of the liquid on the second surface.

14. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, comprising

a liquid recovery mechanism having a recovery port that recovers a liquid on the image plane side of the projection optical system, wherein

a plurality of porous members in which a plurality of pores are formed are provided in a stack over the recovery port.

27. A device manufacturing method characterized by using the exposure apparatus according to claim 1.

10. An exposure apparatus that exposes a substrate by irradiating exposure light onto the substrate via a projection optical system and a liquid;

comprising;

a first surface that includes an end surface of the projection optical system and that comes into contact with the liquid; and

a second surface that is provided so as to surround the first surface and that comes into contact with the liquid, wherein

the first surface and the second surface are arranged such that a distance between a surface of an object located on an image plane side of the projection optical system and the first surface is longer than a distance between the surface of the object and the second surface, and wherein

a contact angle of the liquid on the first surface is smaller than a contact angle of the liquid on the second surface.

11. The exposure apparatus according to claim 10, wherein

a supply of the liquid is performed between the first surface and the second surface.

13. The exposure apparatus according to claim 10, wherein

the second surface has a first region that is provided so as to surround the first surface and a second region that is provided so as to surround, on the outside of the first region with respect to the first surface, the first region, and wherein

a contact angle of the liquid in the first region is larger than a contact angle of the liquid in the second region.

12. An exposure apparatus that exposes a substrate by irradiating exposure light onto the substrate via a projection optical system and a liquid, comprising:

a liquid supply mechanism that supplies a liquid to an image plane side of the projection optical system;

a first surface that includes an end surface of the projection optical system and that comes into contact with the liquid; and

a second surface that is provided so as to surround the first surface and that comes into contact with the liquid, wherein

the first surface and the second surface are respectively arranged so as to form a gap with respect to a surface of the substrate located on the image plane side of the projection optical system, and wherein

the liquid supply mechanism has a supply port of the liquid between the first surface and the second surface.

15. An exposure apparatus that exposes a substrate by irradiating exposure light onto the substrate via a projection optical system and a liquid, comprising:

a liquid recovery mechanism having a recovery port that recovers a liquid on an image plane side of the projection optical system, and

a plurality of porous members having a plurality of pores formed therein provided in a stack over the recovery port.

16. The exposure apparatus according to claim 15, wherein

the porous member comprises a mesh member.

17. The exposure apparatus according to claim 15, further comprising:

a plurality of pores of a similar shape formed in each of the plurality of porous members, wherein

the porous members are provided in a stack over the recovery port such that positions of the pores of the respective porous members are misaligned.

18. The exposure apparatus according to claim 15, wherein

of the plurality of porous members, pores formed in a first porous member is different from pores formed in a second member in size.

19. The exposure apparatus according to claim 15, wherein

the recovery port is provided so as to face the substrate located on the image plane side of the projection optical system and so as to surround a projection region of the projection optical system.

20. The exposure apparatus according to claim 19, wherein

the liquid is supplied between the projection region of the projection optical system and the recovery port.

21. An exposure apparatus that exposes a substrate by irradiating exposure light onto the substrate via a projection optical system and a liquid, comprising:

a liquid supply mechanism that has a supply port capable of supplying a liquid, above an object, substantially in parallel with a surface of the object; and

a liquid recovery mechanism that is provided in a position more distant than the supply port with respect to an optical path of the exposure light and that has a recovery port capable of recovering a liquid on the object from above the object.

22. The exposure apparatus according to claim 21, further comprising:

a porous member provided over the recovery port.

23. The exposure apparatus according to claim 21, further comprising:

an optical system through which the exposure light passes, wherein

the optical system has an end surface that comes in contact with a liquid supplied from the supply port.

24. The exposure apparatus according to claim 23, further comprising

a flat surface that is provided so as to face the object and so as to surround the optical path of the exposure light.

25. The exposure apparatus according to claim 24, wherein

the optical system is provided such that a distance between the flat surface and the object is shorter than a distance between the end surface of the optical system and the object.

26. The exposure apparatus according to claim 21, further comprising:

a suction port is provided in the vicinity of the end surface of the optical system.