Patent US5329336A successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
US5329336A
Expired / Lapsed
US
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Exposure method and apparatus
Assignee: Nikon Corp
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Filing: 1993-06-30
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Granted: 1994-07-12
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Expires: 2013-06-30
Abstract
Abstract An exposure apparatus includes an illumination optical system (10, 1, 4) for radiating illumination light (L2) onto a mask (R) so as to expose a mask pattern (5) onto a photosensitive substrate (W), photoelectric detection means (7) for photoelectrically detecting at least some components of the illumination light for illuminating the mask (R) or the photosensitive substrate (W), input means (34) for inputting information associated with an incident angle range of the illumination light incident on a light-receiving surface of the photoelectric detection means (7), and measurement means (24) for correcting a level of an output signal from the photoelectric detection means (7) in accordance with the input information, and measuring the intensity of the illumination light incident on the photoelectric detection means (7).
Inventors
- 👤 Kazuhiro Hirano
- 👤 Masahiro Nei
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-07 12:42
CPC Classifications
G; G03; G03F; G03F7/00; G03F7/70; G03F7/70058; G03F7/70483; G03F7/7055; G03F7/70558; G03F7/708; G03F7/70858; G03F7/70883
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 18
Claim 1
Independent Claim
104 words
An exposure apparatus comprising: an illumination optical system for radiating illumination light into a mask so as to expose a pattern of said mask on a photosensitive substrate; photoelectric detection means for photoelectrically detecting at least some light components of the illumination light; input means for inputting information associated with an incident angle range of the illumination light incident on a light-receiving surface of said photoelectric detection means; and measurement means for correcting a level of an output signal from said photoelectric detection means in accordance with the input information, and measuring an intensity of the illumination light incident on said photoelectric detection means.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
104 words
An exposure apparatus comprising: an illumination optical system for radiating illumination light into a mask so as to expose a pattern of said mask on a photosensitive substrate; photoelectric detection means for photoelectrically detecting at least some light components of the illumination light; input means for inputting information associated with an incident angle range of the illumination light incident on a light-receiving surface of said photoelectric detection means; and measurement means for correcting a level of an output signal from said photoelectric detection means in accordance with the input information, and measuring an intensity of the illumination light incident on said photoelectric detection means.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
57 words
An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said measurement means comprises storage means for storing a conversion coefficient for converting the level of the output signal from said photoelectric detection means into the intensity of the illumination light incident on said photoelectric detection means as a function corresponding to the information associated with the incident angle range.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
30 words
An apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a stage, which carries said photosensitive substrate, and moves in a predetermined direction, said photoelectric detection means being arranged on said stage.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
86 words
An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said photoelectric detection means is arranged outside an optical path of said illumination optical system, and said apparatus further comprises: a detection optical system for guiding at least some light components of the illumination light radiated on said mask to said photoelectric detection means, and establishing an almost conjugate relationship between the light-receiving surface of said photoelectric detection means and a Fourier transform plane located in said illumination optical system and associated with a pattern surface of said mask.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
141 words
An exposure apparatus comprising: an illumination optical system for radiating illumination light into a mask so as to expose a pattern of said mask on a photosensitive substrate; an optical member, arranged in said illumination optical system, for setting a light amount distribution of the illumination light passing through a Fourier transform plane located in said illumination optical system and associated with a pattern surface of said mask or a plane near the Fourier transform plane in correspondence with the pattern on said mask; photoelectric detection means for photoelectrically detecting at least some light components of the illumination light emerging from said optical member; and measurement means for correcting a level of an output signal from said photoelectric detection means in accordance with the light amount distribution, and measuring an intensity of the illumination light incident on said photoelectric detection means.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
141 words
An exposure apparatus comprising: an illumination optical system for radiating illumination light into a mask so as to expose a pattern of said mask on a photosensitive substrate; an optical member, arranged in said illumination optical system, for setting a light amount distribution of the illumination light passing through a Fourier transform plane located in said illumination optical system and associated with a pattern surface of said mask or a plane near the Fourier transform plane in correspondence with the pattern on said mask; photoelectric detection means for photoelectrically detecting at least some light components of the illumination light emerging from said optical member; and measurement means for correcting a level of an output signal from said photoelectric detection means in accordance with the light amount distribution, and measuring an intensity of the illumination light incident on said photoelectric detection means.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
57 words
An apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said measurement means comprises storage means for storing a conversion coefficient for converting the level of the output signal from said photoelectric detection means into the intensity of the illumination light incident on said photoelectric detection means as a function corresponding to the information associated with the light amount distribution.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
30 words
An apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising: a stage, which carries said photosensitive substrate, and moves in a predetermined direction, said photoelectric detection means being arranged on said stage.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
86 words
An apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said photoelectric detection means is arranged outside an optical path of said illumination optical system, and said apparatus further comprises: a detection optical system for guiding at least some light components of the illumination light radiated on said mask to said photoelectric detection means, and establishing an almost conjugate relationship between the light-receiving surface of said photoelectric detection means and a Fourier transform plane located in said illumination optical system and associated with a pattern surface of said mask.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
43 words
An apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said optical member has a variable aperture stop arranged on or near the Fourier transform plane in said illumination optical system so as to allow a coherence factor of said illumination optical system to be variable.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
114 words
An apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said optical member sets the light amount distribution on the Fourier transform plane in said illumination optical system to be maximal in at least one partial region decentered from an optical axis of said illumination optical system, said optical member has a movable member for moving a position of the partial region in the Fourier transform plane in said illumination optical system, and said measurement means corrects the level of the output signal from said photoelectric detection means in accordance with a distance between the optical axis and a position of center of gravity of the light amount distribution of the illumination light on the partial region.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
135 words
An exposure apparatus comprising: an illumination optical system for radiating illumination light into a mask so as to expose a pattern of said mask on a photosensitive substrate; photoelectric detection means for photoelectrically detecting at least some light components of the illumination light; input means for inputting information associated with an incident angle range of the illumination light incident on a light-receiving surface of said photoelectric detection means; and control means for controlling an amount of the illumination light radiated on said mask on the basis of the input information and an output signal from said photoelectric detection means, so that an accumulated light amount of the illumination light radiated on said photosensitive substrate becomes a proper exposure amount according to photosensitive characteristics of said photosensitive substrate upon exposure of the pattern on said mask.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
135 words
An exposure apparatus comprising: an illumination optical system for radiating illumination light into a mask so as to expose a pattern of said mask on a photosensitive substrate; photoelectric detection means for photoelectrically detecting at least some light components of the illumination light; input means for inputting information associated with an incident angle range of the illumination light incident on a light-receiving surface of said photoelectric detection means; and control means for controlling an amount of the illumination light radiated on said mask on the basis of the input information and an output signal from said photoelectric detection means, so that an accumulated light amount of the illumination light radiated on said photosensitive substrate becomes a proper exposure amount according to photosensitive characteristics of said photosensitive substrate upon exposure of the pattern on said mask.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
30 words
An apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising: a stage, which carries said photosensitive substrate, and moves in a predetermined direction, said photoelectric detection means being arranged on said stage.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
86 words
An apparatus according to claim 11, wherein said photoelectric detection means is arranged outside an optical path of said illumination optical system, and said apparatus further comprises: a detection optical system for guiding at least some light components of the illumination light radiated on said mask to said photoelectric detection means, and establishing an almost conjugate relationship between the light-receiving surface of said photoelectric detection means and a Fourier transform plane located in said illumination optical system and associated with a pattern surface of said mask.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
126 words
An exposure method for exposing a pattern on a mask onto a photosensitive substrate by radiating illumination light onto said mask via an illumination optical system, comprising the steps of: receiving at least some light components of the illumination light by a photoelectric detector before or during the exposure operation; and controlling an amount of the illumination light radiated on said mask on the basis of information associated with an incident angle range of the illumination light incident on said photoelectric detector and an output signal from said photoelectric detector, so that an accumulated light amount of the illumination light radiated on said photosensitive substrate becomes a proper exposure amount according to photosensitive characteristics of said photosensitive substrate upon exposure of the pattern on said mask.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
126 words
An exposure method for exposing a pattern on a mask onto a photosensitive substrate by radiating illumination light onto said mask via an illumination optical system, comprising the steps of: receiving at least some light components of the illumination light by a photoelectric detector before or during the exposure operation; and controlling an amount of the illumination light radiated on said mask on the basis of information associated with an incident angle range of the illumination light incident on said photoelectric detector and an output signal from said photoelectric detector, so that an accumulated light amount of the illumination light radiated on said photosensitive substrate becomes a proper exposure amount according to photosensitive characteristics of said photosensitive substrate upon exposure of the pattern on said mask.
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