Scanning exposure apparatus having a scanning device for scanning light beams along the movement direction of a moving mask stage

• US 5,528,027 A
• Filed: 06/05/1995
• Issued: 06/18/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 06/23/1993
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Inventors: Mizutani, Hideo
• Primary Examiner(s): Westin, Edward P.
• Assistant Examiner(s): LE, QUE TAN
• Application Number:
  US08/463,567
• Time in Patent Office: 379 Days
• Field of Search: 250/234, 250/548, 250/557, 356/399, 356/400, 356/401, 356/393, 356/398, 355/53, 355/55, 355/64, 219/121.82, 219/121.83, 219/121.85
• US Class Current: 250/234
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70358 Scanning exposure, i.e. relative movement of patterned beam and workpiece during imaging
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 9/70 for microlithography measuring printed patterns for monitoring overlay G03F7/70633 or focus G03F7/70641; projection system adjustment G03F7/70258; position control G03F7/70775

Abstract

A scanning exposure apparatus according to the present invention comprises a reticle stage for continuously moving a reticle and a wafer stage for moving a wafer in synchronization with the movement of reticle. A light supply system emits light beams for detecting a relative positional relation between the reticle stage and the wafer stage toward the reticle. On this occasion the emitted light beams are scanned to follow the moving reticle stage, using for example a galvanometer scanner.

Claims

1. A scanning exposure apparatus for continuously transferring segments of an original pattern formed on a photomask onto a photosensitive substrate to transfer an image of the entire original pattern onto said photosensitive substrate, comprising:

a mask stage for moving said photomask in a predetermined direction;

a substrate stage for moving said photosensitive substrate in a direction along the moving direction of said mask stage in synchronization with movement of said mask stage;

driving means for driving said mask stage and substrate stage;

a light supply system for emitting light beams for detecting a relative positional relation between said mask stage and said substrate stage;

scanning means for scanning said light beams emitted from said light supply system along the movement direction of the mask stage so as to follow the moving mask stage; and

a light-receiving system for detecting reflected light of the light beams emitted from said light supply system.

2. A scanning exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said scanning means makes said light beams incident always at constant incident angles relative to a reference plane of said mask stage on which said photomask is to be set.

3. A scanning exposure apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said scanning means comprises a galvanometer scanner equipped with a plane reflecting mirror for reflecting said light beams, and an fθ

lens, said galvanometer scanner being located on an entrance pupil plane of said fθ

lens.

4. A scanning exposure apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said scanning means comprises a square-pillar prism having a square cross section as cut along a direction in which said light beams pass therethrough, said square-pillar prism being arranged to rotate about a barycentric axis thereof.

5. A scanning exposure apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said scanning means comprises a D-prism equipped with two wedge-shaped prisms, said wedge-shaped prisms constituting said D-prism being arranged to rotate in mutually opposite directions about the optical axis of said light beams.

6. A scanning exposure apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a projection optical system for projecting the image of said original pattern at a predetermined projection magnification onto said substrate stage, between said mask stage and said substrate stage.

7. A scanning exposure apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said substrate stage is moved by said driving means in a direction opposite to the moving direction of said mask stage.

8. A scanning exposure apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said substrate stage is moved at a moving velocity β

V where β

is the projection magnification of said projection optical system and V is a moving velocity of said mask stage.

9. A scanning exposure apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said light beams emitted from said light supply system comprise:

a first light beam pair incident into said reference plane of said mask stage, as inclined in symmetry with respect to the moving direction of the mask stage; and

a second light beam pair incident into a reference plane of said substrate stage on which said photosensitive substrate is to be set, as inclined in symmetry with respect to the moving direction of the substrate stage.

10. A scanning exposure apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said light supply system comprises frequency modulating means for providing a predetermined frequency difference between two light beams in each of said light beam pairs.

11. A scanning exposure apparatus according to claim 10,

wherein said photomask comprises a first optical grating mark for detecting a position where the photomask is set;

wherein said photosensitive substrate comprises a second optical grating mark for detecting a position where the photosensitive substrate is set; and

wherein said scanning means scans said first light beam pair as to follow said moving first optical grating mark and scans said second optical beam pair as to follow said moving second optical grating mark.

12. A scanning exposure apparatus according to claim 11,

wherein said light-receiving system comprises:

first detecting means for receiving first interference light to convert it into an electric signal and outputting a first alternate current signal having a frequency according to said frequency difference and the moving velocity of said mask stage; and

second detecting means for receiving second interference light to convert it into an electric signal and outputting a second alternate current signal having a frequency according to said frequency difference and the moving velocity of said substrate stage;

wherein said first interference light is formed by two diffraction beams emergent from the first optical grating mark in a same direction when said first light beam pair is irradiated onto the first optical grating mark;

wherein said second interference light is formed by two diffraction beams emergent from the second optical grating mark in a same direction when said second light beam pair is irradiated onto the second optical grating mark; and

said light-receiving system further comprises positional deviation detecting means for detecting a relative positional deviation between said moving mask stage and substrate stage by comparing said first alternate current signal with said second alternate current signal.

13. A scanning exposure apparatus according to claim 12, further comprising displacing means for displacing at least one of said mask stage and said substrate stage so that an amount of a positional deviation detected by said positional deviation detecting means is kept within a predetermined permissible range.

14. A scanning exposure apparatus according to claim 13,

wherein said first optical grating mark comprises a plurality of grating marks aligned at a predetermined pitch along the moving direction of said photomask thereon;

wherein said second optical grating mark comprises a plurality of grating marks aligned at a predetermined pitch along the moving direction of said photosensitive substrate thereon; and

wherein the following relations are satisfied;

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">a.sub.M ≧

P.sub.M and a.sub.W ≧

P.sub.W ;

where a_M is a width in a scanning direction, of an illumination area on said photomask formed by exposure light;

a_W is a width in the scanning direction, of an illumination area on said photosensitive substrate corresponding to the illumination area on said photomask; and

P_M is a pitch of adjacent first optical grating marks and P_W a pitch of adjacent second optical grating marks.

15. A scanning exposure apparatus according to claim 14, wherein said grating marks comprised said first optical grating mask are arranged on the both sides on said photomask and along the moving direction of said photomask;

and

wherein said grating marks comerised said second optical grating mask are arranged on the both sides on the photosensitive substrate and along the moving direction of said photosensitive substrate.

16. A scanning exposure apparatus according to claim 15, which comprises two sets of control systems, each control system comprising said light supply system, said scanning means, said frequency modulating means, said first and second detecting means, said positional deviation detecting means and said displacing means, corresponding to said first and second optical grating marks arranged on the both sides of said photomask and said photosensitive substrate.

17. A scanning exposure apparatus comprising:

a substrate stage for moving a photosensitive substrate in a direction along a moving direction of a mask stage for moving a photomask in synchronization with movement of said mask stage;

a light supply system for emitting light beams for detecting a relative positional relation between said mask stage and said substrate stage; and

scanning means for scanning said light beams emitted from said light supply system along the movement direction of the mask stage so as to follow the moving mask stage.