Projection exposure apparatus, cleaning and maintenance methods of a projection exposure apparatus, and device manufacturing method

• US 8,035,797 B2
• Filed: 03/23/2006
• Issued: 10/11/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/26/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Inventors: Tani, Yasuhisa
• Primary Examiner(s): Glick; Edward J
• Assistant Examiner(s): Asfaw; Mesfin T
• Application Number:
  US11/386,777
• Publication Number:
  US 20060232757A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,028 Days
• Field of Search: 355/53, 355/30
• US Class Current: 355/53
• CPC Class Codes: B08B 3/10 with additional treatment of the liquid or of the object being cleaned, e.g. by heat, by electricity or by vibration
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/2041 in the presence of a fluid, e.g. immersion; using fluid cooling means
• 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 7/70916 Pollution mitigation, i.e. mitigating effect of contamination or debris, e.g. foil traps
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70925 Cleaning, i.e. actively freeing apparatus from pollutants, e.g. using plasma cleaning
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70975 Assembly, maintenance, transport or storage of apparatus

Abstract

A projection exposure apparatus that exposes a substrate with a liquid interposed between a surface of the substrate and an optical element on the substrate side of a projection optical system; includes liquid supply and discharge mechanisms, which supply the liquid via a liquid supply tube as they recover the liquid via a liquid recovery tube, and an adhesion preventing mechanism that prevents an adhesion of impurities on member forming a flow path for the liquid.

Claims

1. A projection exposure apparatus in which a substrate is exposed with an exposure beam via a liquid on the substrate, the projection exposure apparatus comprising:

a liquid supply and recovery system which supplies the liquid from a supply opening via a liquid supply tube onto the substrate during exposure, and recovers the liquid on the substrate from a recovery opening to a liquid recovery tube during the exposure;

a member having a surface which comes into contact with the liquid that has been supplied from the supply opening and has not yet been recovered from the recovery opening; and

a scale adhesion prevention device provided on the liquid supply tube, which prevents scale from adhering to the surface of the member by using an electrical force.

2. A projection exposure apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a scale adhesion prevention device provided on the liquid recovery tube.

3. A projection exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the scale adhesion prevention device prevents the adhesion of the scale to the surface by applying a magnetic field to an outside of the liquid supply tube or the liquid recovery tube.

4. A projection exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the scale adhesion prevention device prevents the adhesion of the scale to the surface by flowing electrical signals through wiring wound in a coil on the liquid supply tube or the liquid recovery tube.

5. A projection exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the exposure beam is ArF laser light.

6. A device manufacturing method that uses a projection exposure apparatus as recited in claim 1.

7. A projection exposure apparatus in which a substrate is exposed with exposure light via a liquid, the projection exposure apparatus comprising:

a liquid supply system which supplies the liquid from a supply opening via a liquid supply tube onto the substrate during exposure;

a liquid recovery system which recovers the liquid on the substrate from a recovery opening to a liquid recovery tube during the exposure;

a member having a surface which comes into contact with the liquid that has been supplied from the supply opening and has not yet been recovered from the recovery opening; and

an adhesion prevention device which prevents an adhesion of impurities to the surface of the member by using an electrical force.

8. A projection exposure apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the adhesion prevention device prevents an adhesion of impurities to the liquid supply tube of the liquid supply system.

9. A projection exposure apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the adhesion prevention device prevents an adhesion of impurities to the liquid includes the liquid recovery tube of the liquid recovery system.

10. A projection exposure apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the adhesion prevention device prevents an adhesion of impurities to nozzles.

11. A projection exposure apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the adhesion prevention device prevents the adhesion of impurities by generating a magnetic field.

12. A device manufacturing method that uses a projection exposure apparatus as recited in claim 7.

13. A projection exposure apparatus in which a substrate is exposed with exposure light via a liquid on the substrate, the projection exposure apparatus comprising:

a supply opening via which the liquid is supplied to a space on the substrate during exposure;

a recovery opening via which the liquid is recovered from the space during the exposure;

a member having a surface which comes into contact with the liquid that has been supplied from the supply opening and has not yet been recovered from the recovery opening; and

an adhesion prevention device which prevents an adhesion of impurities to the surface of the member using an electrical force.

14. The apparatus according to claim 13, further comprising a projection optical system that has the member through which the substrate is exposed with the exposure light during the exposure.

15. The apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the liquid supplied from the supply opening is filled between the surface of the member and the substrate.

16. The apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the substrate faces the surface of the member during the exposure.

17. The apparatus according to claim 13, further comprising a flow-path forming member having the supply opening, wherein the adhesion prevention device is provided on the flow-path forming member.

18. The apparatus according to claim 13, further comprising a flow-path forming member having the recovery opening, wherein the adhesion prevention device is provided on the flow-path forming member.

19. The apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the adhesion prevention device generates a magnetic field.

20. The apparatus according to claim 13 wherein the adhesion prevention device controls an electrical charge of the impurities in the liquid.

21. A device manufacturing method that uses a projection exposure apparatus as recited in claim 13.

22. A method used in a liquid immersion exposure apparatus in which a substrate is exposed with exposure light via a liquid on the substrate, the method comprising:

supplying the liquid via a supply opening to a space on the substrate during exposure;

recovering the liquid via a recovery opening from the space during the exposure; and

preventing impurities in the liquid from adhering to a surface of a member of the exposure apparatus by using an electrical force, wherein the surface of the member comes into contact with the liquid that has been supplied from the supply opening and has not yet been recovered from the recovery opening.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein the substrate is exposed with the exposure light through the member.

24. The method according to claim 22, wherein the liquid supplied from the supply opening is filled between the surface of the member and the substrate during the exposure.

25. The method according to claim 22, wherein the substrate faces the surface of the member during the exposure.

26. The method according to claim 22, wherein preventing the impurities from adhering to the surface includes generating a magnetic field.

27. The method according to claim 22, wherein preventing the impurities from adhering to the surface includes controlling an electrical charge of the impurities in the liquid.