EXPOSURE APPARATUS AND DEVICE MANUFACTURING METHOD

• US 20080225261A1
• Filed: 03/07/2008
• Published: 09/18/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 03/13/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Inventors: Hirayanagi, Noriyuki
• Application Number:
  US12/044,813
• Publication Number:
  US 20080225261A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 355/72
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70691 Handling of masks or workpieces
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70708 being electrostatic; Electrostatically deformable vacuum chucks
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/6719 characterized by the construction of the processing chambers, e.g. modular processing chambers
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67225 comprising at least one lithography chamber lithographic apparatuses G03F7/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67745 characterized by movements or sequence of movements of transfer devices
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/681 using optical controlling means
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/6831 using electrostatic chucks
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/68742 characterised by a lifting arrangement, e.g. lift pins

Abstract

An exposure apparatus is configured so that a wafer carrier robot can deliver a wafer to a wafer holder held by a holder carrier robot or can carry out a wafer from the wafer holder held by the holder carrier robot, under a reduced-pressure environment. According to the apparatus, even if it takes a relatively long time to replace the wafer on the wafer holder used inside the reduced pressure space, by performing the wafer exchange operation and a predetermined operation (the exposure apparatus main section operation) using the stage on which the wafer holder holding the wafer is mounted concurrently, the influence that the wafer exchange time has on the throughput can be suppressed.

Claims

1. An exposure apparatus that exposes an object with an energy beam and forms a pattern on the object, the apparatus comprising:

an object carrier system which carries an object under a reduced-pressure environment;

an object stage on which a holding device that holds the object is mounted under a reduced-pressure environment; and

a holding device carrier system which temporarily holds the holding device that holds the object and can receive/pass the object from/to the stage under a reduced-pressure environment.

2. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1 wherein

the holding device carrier system can receive/pass the holding device alone from/to the object stage.

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

an object exchange section on which the holding device is temporarily placed to perform object exchange on the holding device under a reduced-pressure environment.

4. The exposure apparatus according to claim 3 wherein

the object exchange section has a temperature control device which adjusts the temperature of the holding device.

5. The exposure apparatus according to claim 3 wherein

the object exchange section has a detection system which detects a position of the object.

6. The exposure apparatus according to claim 3 wherein

the object stage and the object carrier system are substantially divided regarding vibration.

7. The exposure apparatus according to claim 3 wherein

the holding device has an electrostatic chuck to hold the object by electrostatic force.

8. The exposure apparatus according to claim 7 wherein

the holding device has an electrical contact to apply voltage to the electrostatic chuck, and

in the object exchange section, a voltage applying device which applies voltage to the electrostatic chuck via the electric contact is arranged.

9. The exposure apparatus according to claim 3 wherein

in the reduced-pressure environment, there is a plurality of holding devices.

10. The exposure apparatus according to claim 9, the apparatus comprising:

a plurality of the object exchange sections, wherein

in parallel with exposure being performed using one holding device under the reduced-pressure environment, exchange of an object held by the other holding device is performed in the object exchange section.

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

a controller that at least controls exposure of the object, wherein

the controller has correction data for each of a plurality of holding devices and selects the correction data according to the holding device used for exposure.

12. The exposure apparatus according to claim 11 wherein

the correction data include data related to unevenness of the holding device surface.

13. The exposure apparatus according to claim 11 wherein

the correction data include data related to position correction amount of a holding device.

14. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1 wherein

the holding device has an electrostatic chuck to hold the object by electrostatic force.

15. The exposure apparatus according to claim 14 wherein

the holding device has an electrical contact to apply voltage to the electrostatic chuck, and

in the holding device carrier system, a voltage applying device which applies voltage to the electrostatic chuck via the electric contact is arranged.

16. The exposure apparatus according to claim 14 wherein

the holding device has an electrical contact to apply voltage to the electrostatic chuck, and

in the object stage, a voltage applying device which applies voltage to the electrostatic chuck via the electric contact is arranged.

17. The exposure apparatus according to claim 14 wherein

while the holding device carrier system carries the holding device which is in a state holding the object between the object exchange section and the object stage, the holding device holds the object by electrostatic force which remains in the electrostatic force mechanism.

18. The exposure apparatus according to claim 14 wherein

the holding device has a voltage applying device which applies voltage for electrostatic force.

19. The exposure apparatus according to claim 14 wherein

when the holding device holds the object, an area where the holding device and the object come into contact is to be 20% or less of an area of a surface where the object faces the holding device.

20. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1 wherein

in the reduced-pressure environment, there is a plurality of holding devices.

21. The exposure apparatus according to claim 20 wherein

The holding device carrier system can hold at least two of the holding devices simultaneously, and

in parallel with exposure being performed using one holding device under the reduced-pressure environment, exchange of an object held by the other holding device is performed in the holding device carrier system.

22. The exposure apparatus according to claim 20, the apparatus further comprising:

a controller that at least controls exposure of the object, wherein

the controller has correction data for each of the plurality of holding devices and selects the correction data according to the holding device used for exposure.

23. The exposure apparatus according to claim 22 wherein

the correction data include data related to unevenness of the holding device surface.

24. The exposure apparatus according to claim 22 wherein

the correction data include data related to position correction amount of a holding device.

25. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1 wherein

the reduced-pressure environment is formed inside of an enclosed space which is at least partly formed by a chamber.

26. The exposure apparatus according to claim 25 wherein

in the chamber, a discharge opening is arranged to carry out the holding device outside the reduced-pressure environment.

27. A device manufacturing method, including:

exposing a substrate using the exposure apparatus according to claim 1; and

developing a substrate which has been exposed.