A lithographic apparatus configured to project a patterned beam of radiation onto a target portion of a substrate is disclosed. The apparatus includes a first radiation dose detector and a second radiation dose detector, each detector comprising a secondary electron emission surface configured to receive a radiation flux and to emit secondary electrons due to the receipt of the radiation flux, the first radiation dose detector located upstream with respect to the second radiation dose detector viewed with respect to a direction of radiation transmission, and a meter, connected to each detector, to detect a current or voltage resulting from the secondary electron emission from the respective electron emission surface.

Lithographic apparatus, and device manufacturing method

Digital content files containing entertainment media such as movies, TV shows, and the like are distributed from at least one content source primarily responsible for the original creation of the media to subscribers over a network system. The content source is connected over at least one content source network to a plurality of distribution partners, and each distribution partner is connected with a selected group of subscribers over an access network. A requested digital content file is distributed from the content source to a subscriber in a network distribution path comprising at least the content source network, the distribution partner associated with the subscriber, and the second network. A profile information package containing subscriber preferences is transmitted from the subscriber to the content source by way of a proxy over the network distribution path, and the profile information package is stored at the content source.

Movie studio-based network distribution system and method

Illumination systems for microlithographic projection exposure apparatus, as well as related systems, components and methods are disclosed. In some embodiments, an illumination system includes one or more scattering structures and an optical integrator that produces a plurality of secondary light sources.

Illumination system for a microlithographic projection exposure apparatus

An exposure apparatus (EX) fills an optical path space of an exposure light (EL) with a liquid (LQ), and exposes a substrate (P) by irradiating the substrate (P) with the exposure light (EL) through a projection optical system (PL) and the liquid (LQ). A first optical element (LS1) of the projection optical system (PL) is provided with a recessed surface part (2) which is brought into contact with the liquid (LQ). The exposure apparatus (EX) is provided with a removing apparatus (40) for removing foreign materials on the inner side the recessed surface part (2). Immersion exposure is performed by permitting the exposure light to excellently reach an image plane through the projection optical system and the liquid.

Exposure apparatus, exposure method and device manufacturing method

A microlithographic projection exposure apparatus includes a projection lens that is configured for immersion operation. For this purpose an immersion liquid is introduced into an immersion space that is located between a last lens of the projection lens on the image side and a photosensitive layer to be exposed. To reduce fluctuations of refractive index resulting from temperature gradients occurring within the immersion liquid, the projection exposure apparatus includes heat transfer elements that heat or cool partial volumes of the immersion liquid so as to achieve an at least substantially homogenous or at least substantially rotationally symmetric temperature distribution within the immersion liquid.

Microlithographic projection exposure apparatus and measuring device for a projection lens

An apparatus for wavefront detection includes a wavefront source for the production of a wavefront, an optical system transforming the wavefront, a diffraction grating through which the transformed wavefront passes, and a spatially resolving detector following the diffraction grating. The wavefront source has a two-dimensional structure.

Apparatus for wavefront detection

A method and an apparatus for determining the influencing of the state of polarization of optical radiation by an optical system under test, wherein radiation with a defined entrance state of polarization is directed onto the optical system, the exit-side state of polarization is measured, and the influencing of the state of polarization is determined by the optical system with the aid of evaluation of the exit state of polarization with reference to the entrance state of polarization. An analyser arrangement which can be used for this purpose is also disclosed. The method and the apparatus are used, e.g., to determine the influencing of the state of polarization of optical radiation by an optical imaging system of prescribable aperture, the determination being performed in a pupil-resolved fashion.

Method and apparatus for determining the influencing of the state of polarization by an optical system, and an analyser

Current roadmaps show that the semiconductor industry continues to drive the usable Rayleigh resolution towards thefundamental limit (for 50% duty cycle lines) at k 1 =0.25. This is being accomplished through use of various resolutionenhancement technologies (RETs), extremely low aberration optics with stable platforms, and resists processes that haveever-increasing dissolution contrast and smaller diffusion lengths. This talk will give an overview of the latest opticalmechanisms that can be used to improve the imaging system for low k 1 resolutions. We show 3 non-photoresisttechniques to measure the optical parameters of a scanner: 1) a new fast phase measurement interferometer to measureaberrations is presented with an accuracy and repeatability of <3m ) we introduce a method to measure theillumination profile of the exposing source, and 3 a measurement system to monitor scattered light is presented withcorrelation to other techniques using a salted pellicle experiment to create controlled scattered light.The optimization of illumination and exposure dose is presented. We show the mechanism for customizing illuminationbased on specific mask layers. We show how this is done and compare process windows to other more conventionalmodes such as annular illumination or QUASAR . The optimum design is then implemented into hardware that cangive extremely high optical efficiency. We also show how system level control mechanisms can be used to field-to-fieldand across-field exposure to compensate for lithography errors. Examples of these errors can include reticle CDdeviations, wavefront aberrations, and across-field illumination uniformity errors. CD maps, facilitated by SEM andELM, can give the prescribed changes necessary. We present a system that interfaces to new hardware to compensatethese effects by active scanner corrections.Keywords: RETs, aberrations, scattered light, custom illumination, imaging control

Optimizing and Enhancing Optical Systems to Meet the Low k 1 Challenge

The device has a wavefront source (7) with a two-dimensional structure for generating a wavefront, a diffraction grid (11) arranged after the wavefront source and a position resolving detector (19) after the diffraction grid. The wavefront source has an illumination mask with locally varying transmission. The mask can have a rotation symmetrical transmission distribution. Independent claims are also included for the following: a method of wavefront detection and an arrangement for microlithography.

Wavefront detector has wavefront source with two-dimensional structure and locally varying transmission, diffraction grid and position resolving detector

Device and method for wavefront measurement of an optical imaging system by means of phase-shifting interferometry, having a mask structure (6 a) to be arranged on the object side, and/or a grating structure (7 a) to be arranged on the image side. The object-side mask structure includes one or more one-dimensional mask structure patterns, and the image-side grating structure includes one or more two-dimensional grating structure patterns. Alternatively, conversely, the mask structure includes one or more two-dimensional patterns, and the grating structure includes one or more one-dimensional patterns. Additionally or alternatively, a pupil position offset caused by a lateral relative movement of the mask structure and detector element can be taken into account by back calculating the interferogram, respectively recorded by the detector element, using an associated phase-shift characteristic, or by a computational correction of wavefront derivatives, obtained from the recorded interferograms, in the direction of lateral movement. The method and/or the device can by used, for example, for determining aberration in the case of high-resolution projection objectives of microlithography exposure machines using shearing or point interferometry.

Helmut Haidner

Papers

Apparatus for wavefront detection

Method and apparatus for determining the influencing of the state of polarization by an optical system, and an analyser

Optimizing and Enhancing Optical Systems to Meet the Low k 1 Challenge

Wavefront detector has wavefront source with two-dimensional structure and locally varying transmission, diffraction grid and position resolving detector

Device and method for wavefront measurement of an optical imaging system by means of phase-shifting interferometry