Lithographic apparatus with multiple alignment arrangements and alignment measuring method

• US 7,626,701 B2
• Filed: 12/27/2004
• Issued: 12/01/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/27/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ASML Netherlands BV (ASML Holding NV)
• Original Assignee: ASML Netherlands BV (ASML Holding NV)
• Inventors: Van Bilsen, Franciscus Bernardus Maria
• Primary Examiner(s): Toatley, Jr.; Gregory J
• Assistant Examiner(s): Stock, Jr.; Gordon J
• Application Number:
  US11/020,644
• Publication Number:
  US 20060141374A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,800 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 356/401
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 9/7003 Alignment type or strategy, e.g. leveling, global alignment
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 9/7046 Strategy, e.g. mark, sensor or wavelength selection
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 9/7088 Alignment mark detection, e.g. TTR, TTL, off-axis detection, array detector, video detection

Abstract

A lithographic apparatus has a plurality of different alignment arrangements that are used to perform an alignment measurement on the same mark(s) by: detecting a first alignment mark located on an object and producing a first alignment signal by a first detector; detecting the first mark and producing a second alignment signal by a second detector using a different alignment measurement than the first detector; receiving the first alignment signal from the first detector; calculating a first position of the at least first mark based on the first alignment signal; receiving the second alignment signal from the second detector; calculating a further first position of the at least first mark based on the second alignment signal.

Claims

1. A lithographic apparatus, comprising:

a first alignment arrangement comprising a first detector configured to detect by a first alignment measurement a first alignment mark on an object and to produce a first alignment signal, wherein the first alignment arrangement comprises a first light source configured to produce a first light beam;

a second alignment arrangement using a second alignment measurement different than the first alignment arrangement and comprising a second detector arranged to detect the first mark and to produce a second alignment signal, wherein the second alignment arrangement comprises a second light source configured to produce a second light beam; and

a processor connected to the first detector and to the second detector, and configured to;

receive the first alignment signal from the first detector;

calculate a position of the first mark based on the first alignment signal;

receive the second alignment signal from the second detector;

calculate a further first position of the first mark based on the second alignment signal; and

combine the position of the first mark and the further position of the first mark to calculate a calculated position of the first mark.

2. A lithographic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the object is a substrate or a substrate table.

3. A lithographic apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

an illumination system configured to condition a radiation beam;

a support configured to support a patterning device, the patterning device configured to impart the radiation beam with a pattern in its cross-section to form a patterned radiation beam; and

a projection system configured to project the patterned radiation beam onto a target portion of a substrate.

4. A lithographic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the second alignment measurement is laser step alignment measurement, laser interferometric alignment measurement, or field image alignment measurement.

5. A lithographic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first mark is

a first mark with a plurality of bar shaped structures extending in a predetermined direction;

a second mark with a first plurality of bar shaped structures extending in a first direction and a second plurality of bar shaped structures extending in a second direction substantially perpendicular to the first direction;

or

a third mark with a plurality of square shaped structures located in a regular pattern in a plurality of columns and a plurality of rows.

6. A lithographic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein both the first and second alignment arrangements are configured to perform an alignment measurement in a first direction and a second direction perpendicular to the first direction on the first mark.

7. A lithographic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the lithographic apparatus is configured to perform immersion lithography.

8. A lithographic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the object is a substrate having a top side to be exposed by the lithographic apparatus and a bottom side, and the first alignment mark is located on the bottom side.

9. A lithographic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to select either the first or the second alignment arrangement to perform further alignment measurements based on a value of at least one quality indicator related to at least one of the first and second alignment signals.

10. A lithographic apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the first alignment arrangement comprises

first optics configured to receive the first light beam and produce a first alignment beam, direct the first alignment beam to the first mark located on the object, receive first alignment radiation back from the first mark, and transmit the first alignment radiation to the first detector.

11. A lithographic apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the quality indicator is at least one of signal strength, noise level, and fit quality of the first and second alignment signals.

12. A lithographic apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the second alignment arrangement comprises

second optics configured to receive the second light beam and produce a second alignment beam, direct the second alignment beam to the first mark located on the object, receive second alignment radiation back from the first mark, and transmit the second alignment radiation to the second detector.

13. A lithographic apparatus according to claim 12, further comprising:

an actuator configured to move the object, wherein the processor is configured to

control the actuator to move the object such that a second alignment mark and a third alignment mark consecutively receive the first alignment beam;

receive the first alignment signal from the first detector with position information as to the first, second and third marks;

calculate a position of the second mark and a position of the third mark based on the first alignment signal;

control the actuator to move the object such that the at least second and third marks receive the second alignment beam;

receive the second alignment signal from the second detector with further position information as to the first, second and third marks;

calculate a further position of the second mark and a further position of the third mark based on the second alignment signal;

combine the position and the further position of the second mark to calculate a calculated position of the at least second mark, and combine the position and the further position of the third mark to calculate a calculated position of the at least third mark; and

calculate a coordinate system based on the calculated position of the first mark, the calculated position of the second mark, and the calculated position of the third mark.

14. A lithographic apparatus, comprising:

a first alignment arrangement comprising a first light source and a first detector configured to detect a first alignment mark located on an object and to produce a first alignment signal;

a second alignment arrangement comprising a second light source and a second detector configured to detect a second alignment mark on the object and to produce a second alignment signal;

a processor connected to the first detector and to the second detector, and configured to;

receive the first alignment signal from the first detector;

calculated a position of the first mark based on the first alignment signal;

receive the second alignment signal from the second detector;

calculate a position of the second mark based on the second alignment signal;

combine the position of the first mark and the position of the second mark to calculate a calculated position while using at least one weighting factor on either the position of the first mark or the position of the second mark, the weighting factor being determined by an indicator.

15. A lithographic apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the indicator is a signal strength, a noise level, and/or a fit quality of the first and second alignment signals.

16. A lithographic apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the first and second alignment arrangements are configured to perform laser step alignment measurement, laser interferometric alignment measurement, or field image alignment measurement.

17. A lithographic apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the lithographic apparatus is arranged to perform immersion lithography.

18. A lithographic apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the object is a substrate having a top side to be exposed by the lithographic apparatus and a bottom side, and the first alignment mark is located on the bottom side.

19. An alignment measurement method, comprising:

detecting by a first alignment measurement at least a first alignment mark located on an object and producing a first alignment signal by a first detector, wherein the first alignment measurement comprises generating from a first light source a first light beam;

detecting the first mark and producing a second alignment signal by a second detector using a second alignment measurement different than the first detector;

receiving the first alignment signal from the first detector, wherein the second alignment measurement comprises generating from a second light source a second light beam;

calculating a position of the first mark based on the first alignment signal;

receiving the second alignment signal from the second detector;

calculating a further position of the at least first mark based on the second alignment signal; and

combining the position of the first mark and the further position of the first mark to calculate a calculated position of the first mark.

20. A method according to claim 19, comprising:

controlling an actuator to move the object such that at least a second alignment mark and a third alignment mark consecutively receive the first alignment beam;

receiving the first alignment signal from the first detector with position information as to the first, second and third marks;

calculating also a position of the second mark and a position of the third mark based on the first alignment signal;

controlling the actuator to move the object such that the at least second and third marks receive the second alignment beam;

receiving the second alignment signal from the second detector with further position information as to the first, second and third marks;

calculating a further position of the second mark and a further position of the third mark based on the second alignment signal;

combining the position of the second mark and the further position of the second mark to calculate a calculated position of the at least second mark, and combining the position of the third mark and the further position of the third mark to calculate a calculated position of the at least third mark; and

calculating a coordinate system based on the calculated position of the first mark, the calculated position of the second mark, and the calculated position of the first mark.

21. A method according to claim 19, wherein the object is a substrate and the method further comprises, after calculating the further first position of the first mark based on the second alignment signal:

projecting a patterned radiation beam onto a target portion of the object; and

manufacturing a device from the object

22. An alignment measurement method, comprising:

detecting first alignment mark located on an object and producing a first alignment signal by a first detector using a first beam of light generated from a first light source;

detecting a second mark on the object and producing a second alignment signal by a second detector using a second beam of light generated from a second light source;

receiving the first alignment signal from the first detector;

calculating a position of the first mark based on the first alignment signal;

receiving the second alignment signal from the second detector;

calculating a position of the second mark based on the second alignment signal; and

combining the position of the first mark and the position of the second mark to calculate a calculated position while using at least one weighting factor on either the position of the first mark or the position of the second mark, the weighting factor being determined by an indicator.

23. A method according to claim 22, wherein the object is a substrate and the method comprises, after combining the first and second positions to calculate a calculated position while using at least one weighting factor on either the first or second position:

projecting a patterned radiation beam onto a target portion of the object;

manufacturing a device from the object.

24. A machine-readable storage medium comprising machine executable instructions to be loaded by a processor of a lithographic apparatus, and configured to instruct the lithographic apparatus to perform an alignment measurement method comprising:

detecting by a first alignment measurement a first alignment mark located on an object and producing a first alignment signal by a first detector using a first beam of light generated from a first light source;

detecting the first mark and producing a second alignment signal by a second detector using a second alignment measurement different than the first detector using a second beam of light generated from a second light source;

receiving the first alignment signal from the first detector;

calculating a position of the first mark based on the first alignment signal;

receiving the second alignment signal from the second detector;

calculating a further position of the at least first mark based on the second alignment signal; and

combining the position of the first mark and the further position of the first mark to calculate a calculated position of the first mark.

25. A machine-readable storage medium comprising machine executable instructions to be loaded by a processor of a lithographic apparatus, and configured to instruct the lithographic apparatus to perform an alignment measurement method comprising:

detecting a first alignment mark located on an object and producing a first alignment signal by a first detector using a first beam of light generated from a first light source;

detecting a second mark on the object and producing a second alignment signal by a second detector using a first beam of light generated from a first light source;

receiving the first alignment signal from the first detector;

calculating a position of the first mark based on the first alignment signal;

receiving the second alignment signal from the second detector;

calculating a position of the second mark based on the second alignment signal; and

combining the position of the first mark and the position of the second mark to calculate a calculated position while using at least one weighting factor on either the position of the first mark or the position of the second mark, the weighting factor being determined by an indicator.