METHOD OF EVALUATING OPTICAL PERFORMANCE OF OPTICAL SYSTEM

• US 20090254305A1
• Filed: 04/06/2009
• Published: 10/08/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/08/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Koizumi, Ryo
• Application Number:
  US12/419,182
• Publication Number:
  US 20090254305A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 702/167
• CPC Class Codes: G01M 11/025 by determining the shape of the object to be tested measuring contours or curvatures by optical means G01B11/24

Abstract

A method of evaluating an optical performance of an optical system comprises a locating step of locating a plurality of circular regions in an evaluated region on an optical element included in the optical system, a fitting step of fitting a polynomial to surface shape data representing a surface shape of the optical element in each of the plurality of circular regions, and a calculation step of calculating the optical performance of the optical system based on the fitting result obtained in the fitting step in each of the plurality of circular regions.

Claims

1. A method of evaluating an optical performance of an optical system, the method comprising:

a locating step of locating a plurality of circular regions in an evaluated region on an optical element included in the optical system;

a fitting step of fitting a polynomial to surface shape data representing a surface shape of the optical element in each of the plurality of circular regions; and

a calculation step of calculating the optical performance of the optical system based on the fitting result obtained in the fitting step in each of the plurality of circular regions.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein

the fitting result includes a determination result of a coefficient of the polynomial, and

the calculation in the calculation step includes multiplying the coefficient by a sensitivity of the optical performance to the coefficient.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising a determination step of determining a plurality of object points in the optical system as evaluated object points,

wherein in the locating step, the plurality of circular regions are located such that one circular region includes a region in which light coming from one object point determined in the determination step passes through the optical element.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the polynomial includes a Zernike polynomial.

5. A method of creating a processing plan for an optical element included in an optical system, the method comprising:

a determination step of determining a plurality of object points in the optical system as evaluated object points;

a locating step of locating a plurality of circular regions in an evaluated region on the optical element such that one circular region includes a region in which light coming from one object point determined in the determination step passes through the optical element;

a fitting step of fitting a polynomial to surface shape data representing a surface shape of the optical element in each of the plurality of circular regions;

an optical performance calculation step of calculating an optical performance of the optical system based on the fitting result obtained in the fitting step in each of the plurality of circular regions;

a specifying step of specifying an object point at which the optical performance calculated in the calculation step is more than an allowable value; and

a processing amount calculation step of calculating an amount of processing, to make the optical performance not more than the allowable value, of a processed region corresponding to the object point specified in the specifying step in the evaluated region on the optical element.

6. A method of evaluating a surface shape of a measured object, the method comprising:

an extraction step of extracting surface shape data in a plurality of circular regions from surface shape data representing a surface shape of the measured object in an evaluated region; and

a fitting step of fitting a polynomial to the surface shape data in the plurality of circular regions extracted in the extraction step.

7. A method of manufacturing an optical element included in an optical system, the method comprising:

a determination step of determining a plurality of object points in the optical system as evaluated object points;

a locating step of locating a plurality of circular regions in an evaluated region on the optical element such that one circular region includes a region in which light coming from one object point determined in the determination step passes through the optical element;

a fitting step of fitting a polynomial to surface shape data representing a surface shape of the optical element in each of the plurality of circular regions;

an optical performance calculation step of calculating an optical performance of the optical system based on the fitting result obtained in the fitting step in each of the plurality of circular regions;

a specifying step of specifying an object point at which the optical performance calculated in the calculation step is more than an allowable value;

a processing amount calculation step of calculating an amount of processing, to make the optical performance not more than the allowable value, of a processed region corresponding to the object point specified in the specifying step in the evaluated region on the optical element; and

a processing step of processing the processed region in accordance with the processing amount calculated in the processing amount calculation step.

8. A memory medium storing a computer program for making a computer execute a method of evaluating an optical performance of an optical system, the method comprising:

a locating step of locating a plurality of circular regions in an evaluated region on an optical element included in the optical system;

a fitting step of fitting a polynomial to surface shape data representing a surface shape of the optical element in each of the plurality of circular regions; and

a calculation step of calculating the optical performance of the optical system based on the fitting result obtained in the fitting step in each of the plurality of circular regions.

9. A memory medium storing a computer program for making a computer execute a method of creating a processing plan for an optical element included in an optical system, the method comprising:

a determination step of determining a plurality of object points in the optical system as evaluated object points;

a locating step of locating a plurality of circular regions in an evaluated region on the optical element such that one circular region includes a region in which light coming from one object point determined in the determination step passes through the optical element;

a fitting step of fitting a polynomial to surface shape data representing a surface shape of the optical element in each of the plurality of circular regions;

an optical performance calculation step of calculating an optical performance of the optical system based on the fitting result obtained in the fitting step in each of the plurality of circular regions;

a specifying step of specifying an object point at which the optical performance calculated in the calculation step is more than an allowable value; and

a processing amount calculation step of calculating an amount of processing, to make the optical performance not more than the allowable value, of a processed region corresponding to the object point specified in the specifying step in the evaluated region on the optical element.

10. A memory medium storing a computer program for making a computer execute a method of evaluating a surface shape of a measured object, the method comprising:

an extraction step of extracting surface shape data in a plurality of circular regions from surface shape data representing a surface shape of the measured object in an evaluated region; and

a fitting step of fitting a polynomial to the surface shape data in the plurality of circular regions extracted in the extraction step.