EXPOSURE CONDITION DETERMINATION METHOD, EXPOSURE METHOD, EXPOSURE APPARATUS, AND DEVICE MANUFACTURING METHOD

• US 20100002206A1
• Filed: 03/30/2006
• Published: 01/07/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/30/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Inventors: Nagasaka, Hiroyuki, Kida, Yoshiki
• Granted Patent: US 9,239,524 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 355/30
• 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 7/7055 Exposure light control in all parts of the microlithographic apparatus, e.g. pulse length control or light interruption
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/7085 Detection arrangement, e.g. detectors of apparatus alignment possibly mounted on wafers, exposure dose, photo-cleaning flux, stray light, thermal load

Abstract

The situation of a liquid immersion region (LR) formed on the surface of a substrate (P) is detected while changing at least one of the movement condition of the substrate (P) and the liquid immersion condition when forming the liquid immersion region (LR), and an exposure condition is determined based on the detection results.

Claims

1. A method for determining an exposure condition when exposing a substrate by irradiating the substrate with exposure light via a liquid of liquid immersion region formed on the substrate, the method comprising:

detecting the situation of a liquid immersion region formed on the surface of a predetermined object while changing at least one of the movement condition of the object and the liquid immersion condition when forming the liquid immersion region; and

determining the exposure condition based on the detection results.

2. A determination method according to claim 1, wherein the object is the substrate or has a surface condition substantially equivalent to that of the substrate.

3. A determination method according to claim 1, wherein the substrate is irradiated with the exposure light via an optical member, wherein the liquid immersion region is formed on the object by filling with a liquid a predetermined space between the object and an optical member which faces the surface of the object and through which the exposure light passes, and wherein the situation of the liquid immersion region includes the leakage of the liquid with which the predetermined space is filled.

4. A determination method according to claim 3, wherein by detecting the edge portion of the liquid immersion region, presence of the leakage of the liquid is judged.

5. A determination method according to claim 3, wherein by detecting information relating to at least one of the position, the size, and the shape of the liquid immersion region, presence of the leakage of the liquid is judged.

6. A determination method according to claim 3, wherein by detecting the position of the edge of the liquid immersion region relative to the predetermined space, presence of the leakage of the liquid is judged.

7. A determination method according to claim 1, wherein by receiving detection light via the liquid immersion region, the situation of the liquid immersion region is detected.

8. A determination method according to claim 1, wherein the vicinity of the edge of the liquid immersion region is irradiated with detection light, and based on the light receiving results from a light receiving portion provided at a predetermined position relative to the detection light, the situation of the liquid immersion region is detected.

9. A determination method according to claim 7, wherein the surface of the object is irradiated with the detection light.

10. A determination method according to claim 7, wherein the detection light travels nearly parallel to the surface of the object.

11. A determination method according to claim 1, wherein the liquid immersion region is imaged, and based on the imaging results, the situation of the liquid immersion region is detected.

12. A determination method according to claim 1, wherein the situation of the liquid immersion region is detected at least from the side of the object relative to the liquid immersion region.

13. A determination method according to claim 1, wherein the object has, at least a portion of its surface, a light transmitting portion, and wherein the situation of the liquid immersion region is detected via the light transmitting portion.

14. A determination method according to claim 1, wherein the situation of the liquid immersion region is detected at least during movement of the object.

15. A determination method according to claim 1, wherein the movement condition of the object includes at least one of the moving speed, the moving distance, and the moving direction of the object.

16. A determination method according to claim 1, wherein the liquid immersion condition includes at least one of the per-unit-time liquid supply amount and the per-unit-time liquid recovery amount.

17. An exposure method in which the substrate is exposed based on an exposure condition determined by a determination method according to claim 1.

18. A device manufacturing method that uses the exposure method according to claim 17.

19. An exposure apparatus in which a substrate is exposed via an optical member and a liquid, the exposure apparatus comprising:

a liquid immersion mechanism that fills a predetermined space between the optical member and the substrate with a liquid to form a liquid immersion region; and

a detection device that detects the situation of the liquid immersion region, while changing at least one of the movement condition of an object and the liquid immersion condition for forming of the liquid immersion region between the optical member and the object.

20. An exposure apparatus according to claim 19, further comprising a memory that stores the detection results.

21. An exposure apparatus according to claim 19, further comprising a controller that based on the detection results, determines the exposure condition when exposing the substrate via the liquid.

22. An exposure apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the object is the substrate or has a surface condition substantially equivalent to that of the substrate.

23. An exposure apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the detection device detects information relating to the leakage of the liquid with which the predetermined space is filled.

24. An exposure apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the detection device receives detection light via the liquid immersion region.

25. An exposure apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the detection device images the liquid immersion region.

26. An exposure apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the detection device detects the situation of the liquid immersion region at least from the side of the object relative to the liquid immersion region.

27. An exposure apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the detection device detects the situation of the liquid immersion region at least during movement of the object.

28. An exposure apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the movement condition of the object includes at least one of the moving speed, the moving distance, and the moving direction of the object.

29. An exposure apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the liquid immersion condition includes at least one of the per-unit-time liquid supply amount and the per-unit-time liquid recovery amount.

30. A device manufacturing method that uses an exposure apparatus according to claim 19.