Exposure apparatus and method for producing device

• US 8,125,612 B2
• Filed: 11/22/2006
• Issued: 02/28/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 05/23/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Inventors: Kobayashi, Naoyuki, Mizuno, Yasushi, Shiraishi, Kenichi
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, HUNG
• Application Number:
  US11/603,078
• Publication Number:
  US 20070064210A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,924 Days
• Field of Search: 355/30, 355/53, 355/67, 250/548
• US Class Current: 355/53
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 27/52 Details
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/00 Photomechanical, e.g. photolithographic, production of textured or patterned surfaces, e.g. printing surfaces; Materials therefor, e.g. comprising photoresists; Apparatus specially adapted therefor using photoresist structures for special production processes, see the relevant places, e.g. B44C, H01L, e.g. H01L21/00, H05K
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/2041 in the presence of a fluid, e.g. immersion; using fluid cooling means
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70316 Details of optical elements, e.g. of Bragg reflectors, extreme ultraviolet [EUV] multilayer or bilayer mirrors or diffractive optical elements
• 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 7/70775 Position control, e.g. interferometers or encoders for determining the stage position
• 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
• 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 7/70958 Optical materials or coatings, e.g. with particular transmittance, reflectance or anti-reflection properties
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 9/7015 Reference, i.e. alignment of original or workpiece with respect to a reference not on the original or workpiece
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 9/7088 Alignment mark detection, e.g. TTR, TTL, off-axis detection, array detector, video detection
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 9/7096 Arrangement, mounting, housing, environment, cleaning or maintenance of apparatus

Abstract

There is provided an exposure apparatus capable of forming a desirable device pattern by removing unnecessary liquid when performing exposure by projecting a pattern onto the substrate via a projection optical system and the liquid. The exposure device projects an image of the pattern onto the substrate P via the projection optical system and the liquid so as to expose the substrate P. The exposure device includes a liquid removing mechanism 40 which removes the liquid remaining on a part 7 arranged in the vicinity of the image plane of the projection optical system.

Claims

1. A lithographic apparatus comprising:

a substrate table which holds a substrate;

a projection system which projects a patterned beam onto a target portion of the substrate on the substrate table;

a liquid supply system which at least partly fills a space between the projection system and an object on the substrate table with a liquid; and

a drying station which removes the liquid from the substrate table or from both the substrate table and the object.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the drying station is positioned between the projection system and a substrate post exposure processing module.

3. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the substrate table transports the object to the drying station.

4. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the substrate table supports the object during removal of liquid from the object by the drying station.

5. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the drying station comprises a gas flow device that provides a flow of gas over a surface of the substrate table or over surfaces of the substrate table and the object.

6. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the drying station comprises a gas inlet which provides gas onto a surface of the substrate table or onto surfaces of the substrate table and the object.

7. An apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the gas inlet is slit-shaped and provides the gas at an angle to the surface of the substrate table or to the surfaces of the substrate table and the object.

8. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the drying station comprises a gas outlet which removes gas, liquid, or both from a surface of the substrate table or from surfaces of the substrate table and the object.

9. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the object comprises a substrate.

10. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the object comprises a sensor.

17. An apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the drying station comprises a liquid-absorbing member configured to absorb liquid on the substrate table.

19. An apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the drying station comprises a sucking unit configured to suck at least a portion of the liquid.

11. A device manufacturing method comprising:

providing a liquid between a projection system and an object on a substrate table;

projecting a patterned beam of radiation, through the liquid, onto a target portion of a substrate on the substrate table using the projection system; and

removing the liquid from the substrate table or from the substrate table and the object.

12. A method according to claim 11, comprising providing a flow of gas over a surface of the substrate table or over surfaces of the substrate table and the object.

13. A method according to claim 12, wherein the flow of gas is provided from a slit-shaped gas inlet and the flow of gas is provided at an angle to the surface of the substrate table or to the surfaces of the substrate table and the object.

14. A method according to claim 11, comprising removing gas, liquid, or both from a surface of the substrate table or from surfaces of the substrate table and the object.

15. A method according to claim 11, wherein the object comprises a substrate.

16. A method according to claim 11, wherein the object comprises a sensor.

18. A method according to claim 11, wherein removing the liquid further comprises absorbing the liquid.

20. A method according to claim 11, wherein removing the liquid further comprises sucking the liquid.