| Patent application number | Description | Published |
|---|
| 20090002653 | Lithographic apparatus having encoder type position sensor system - A lithographic apparatus is disclosed that includes an encoder type sensor system configured to measure a position of a substrate table of the lithographic apparatus relative to a reference structure. The encoder type sensor system includes an encoder sensor head and an encoder sensor target and the lithographic apparatus comprises a recess to accommodate the encoder sensor target. | 01-01-2009 |
| 20090090877 | MODULE AND METHOD FOR PRODUCING EXTREME ULTRAVIOLET RADIATION - A module for producing extreme ultraviolet radiation includes a supply configured to supply droplets of an ignition material to a predetermined target ignition position and a laser arranged to be focused on the predetermined target ignition position and to produce a plasma by hitting such a droplet which is located at the predetermined target ignition position in order to change the droplet into an extreme ultraviolet producing plasma. Also, the module includes a collector mirror having a mirror surface constructed and arranged to reflect the radiation in order to focus the radiation on a focal point. A fluid supply is constructed and arranged to form a gas flow flowing away from the mirror surface in a direction transverse with respect to the mirror surface in order to mitigate particle debris produced by the plasma. | 04-09-2009 |
| 20090091725 | Lithographic Apparatus, Projection Assembly and Active Damping - A lithographic apparatus comprises an illumination system configured to condition a radiation beam and a support constructed to support a patterning device. The lithographic apparatus further comprises a substrate table constructed to hold a substrate; and a projection system configured to project the patterned beam onto a target portion of the substrate. An active damping system is provided to dampen a vibration of at least part of the projection system. The active damping system comprises a combination of a sensor to measure a position quantity of the projection system and an actuator to exert a force on the projection system in dependency of a signal provided by the sensor. The active damping system is corrected to a damping mass, the damping mass being connected to the projection system. | 04-09-2009 |
| 20090122284 | LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS HAVING AN ACTIVE DAMPING SUBASSEMBLY - A lithographic apparatus includes a projection system to project a patterned radiation beam onto a substrate, and a damping system to dampen a vibration of at least part of the projection system, the damping system including an interface damping mass and an active damping subsystem to dampen a vibration of at least part of the interface damping mass, the interface damping mass connected to the projection system, and the active damping subsystem connected to the interface damping mass, the active damping subsystem including a sensor to measure a position quantity of the interface damping mass and an actuator to exert a force on the interface damping mass based on a signal provided by the sensor. The damping system further includes an interface damping device connected to the interface damping mass and configured to damp a movement of the interface damping mass at an eigenfrequency of the interface damping mass. | 05-14-2009 |
| 20090174115 | IMPRINT LITHOGRAPHY - An imprinting method is disclosed that involves, in an embodiment, redistributing a volume of imprintable medium in a flowable state over a target portion of a surface of a substrate into regions of differing volume corresponding to regions of differing pattern density of an imprint pattern of a template, contacting the medium while in the flowable state with the template to form the imprint pattern in the medium, subjecting the medium to conditions to change the medium into a substantially non-flowable state, and separating the template from the medium while in the substantially non-flowable state. | 07-09-2009 |
| 20090185149 | IMMERSION LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS WITH IMMERSION FLUID RE-CIRCULATING SYSTEM - A lithographic apparatus includes a projection system, a fluid handling structure, a metrology device, and a recycling control device. The projection system is configured to project a patterned radiation beam onto a target portion of a substrate, the substrate being supported on a substrate table. The fluid handling structure is configured to provide an immersion fluid to a space between the projection system and the substrate and/or substrate table. The metrology device is configured to monitor a parameter of the immersion fluid. The recycling control device regulates a routing of the immersion fluid either to be reused by the fluid handling structure or to be reconditioned based on the quality of immersion fluid indicated by the metrology device. | 07-23-2009 |
| 20090197211 | LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS AND DEVICE MANUFACTURING METHOD - Liquid is supplied to a space between the projection system of a lithographic apparatus and a substrate. A flow of gas towards a vacuum inlet prevents the humid gas from escaping to other parts of the lithographic apparatus. This may help to protect intricate parts of the lithographic apparatus from being damaged by the presence of humid gas. | 08-06-2009 |
| 20090207397 | LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS AND DEVICE MANUFACTURING METHOD - An immersion lithographic projection apparatus is disclosed in which liquid is provided between a projection system of the apparatus and a substrate. The use of both liquidphobic and liquidphilic layers on various elements of the apparatus is provided to help prevent formation of bubbles in the liquid and to help reduce residue on the elements after being in contact with the liquid. | 08-20-2009 |
| 20090207422 | LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR CALIBRATING THE SAME - A measurement system configured to measure a position of an object in a lithographic apparatus, includes at least three position detectors configured to detect the position of the object, the at least three position detectors each including a single or multi-dimensional optical encoder to provide at least six position values, the optical encoders being coupled to the object at different locations within a three dimensional coordinate system, wherein at least one position value is provided for each dimension of the three dimensional coordinate system, and wherein the measurement system is configured to calculate the position of the object within the three dimensional coordinate system from a subset of at least three of the six position values and to calculate an orientation of the object with respect to the three dimensional coordinate system from another subset of at least three of the six position values. | 08-20-2009 |
| 20090208878 | Lithographic System, Lithographic Apparatus and Device Manufacturing Method - A lithographic system includes two lithographic apparatus. A first lithographic apparatus is configured to project a patterned radiation beam onto a first target portion of a substrate. The second lithographic apparatus includes an interferometric arrangement configured to split the radiation beam and to recombine the split beams so as to produce an interference pattern. A masking arrangement is configured to selectively transmit a portion of the interference pattern and a projection system is configured to project the selectively transmitted portion of the interference pattern onto a second target portion of the substrate. | 08-20-2009 |
| 20090214986 | LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS AND DEVICE MANUFACTURING METHOD - The joint between the projection system element and its support comprises an inorganic layer or a direct bond and is thus liquid tight, which can prevent deformation by an immersion liquid. The joint can be made either warm or cold. Solders, glue, and glue protection can all be used in the formation of this joint. In an embodiment, the elements and its support are made of quartz. | 08-27-2009 |
| 20090262328 | ILLUMINATION SYSTEM AND LITHOGRAPHIC METHOD - An illumination system of a lithographic apparatus is disclosed that includes a first optical element to receive a radiation beam, the first optical element comprising first raster elements that partition the radiation beam into a plurality of radiation channels, and a second optical element to receive the plurality of radiation channels, the second optical element comprising second raster elements. For each of the radiation channels a raster element of said first raster elements is associated with a respective raster element of said second raster elements to provide a continuous beam path from said first optical element to an object plane. A filter is disposed in a path traversed by the radiation beam to create a desired spatial intensity distribution in a pupil of the illumination system, by, for example, reducing a transmittance of a selection of one or more of the radiation channels. | 10-22-2009 |
| 20090272917 | RADIATION SOURCE - A radiation source includes a radiation emitter configured to emit radiation, a collector configured to collect the radiation, and a contamination trap configured to trap contamination emitted by the radiation source. The contamination trap includes a plurality of foils that extend substantially radially, a first magnet ring configured to lie outside of an outer conical trajectory of radiation that is collected by the collector, and a second magnet ring configured to lie within the trajectory of radiation that is collected by the collector. The magnet rings are configured to provide a magnetic field that includes a component that is parallel to the foils. | 11-05-2009 |
| 20090290135 | LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS AND DEVICE MANUFACTURING METHOD - A lithographic projection apparatus includes a support structure configured to hold a patterning device, the patterning device configured to pattern a beam of radiation according to a desired pattern; a projection system configured to project the patterned beam onto a target portion of a substrate; a substrate table configured to hold the substrate, the substrate table including a support surface configured to support an intermediary plate between the projection system and at least one of the substrate and an object positioned on the substrate table and not in contact with the at least one of the substrate and the object; and a liquid supply system configured to provide a liquid, through which the beam is to be projected, in a space between the projection system and the at least one of the substrate and the object. | 11-26-2009 |
| 20090296056 | SUBSTRATE TABLE, LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS AND DEVICE MANUFACTURING METHOD - A table is disclosed in which measures are taken to seal between the table and an edge of an object, in use, supported on the table. In particular, a capillary passage is formed between the object on the table and the table itself. A meniscus pinning feature and/or the presence of an overpressure at the radially inward side of the capillary passage holds the liquid in the passage and helps prevent it from advancing further radially inwardly. The features to perform this function may be associated with or formed in a member surrounding the object. The member may be thermally decoupled from a part of the table. | 12-03-2009 |
| 20100002207 | LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS AND DEVICE MANUFACTURING METHOD - A lithographic apparatus includes a projection system configured to project an image onto a substrate, a substrate table configured to support the substrate, a first chamber that at least partially surrounds the projection system, and a second chamber that at least partially surrounds the substrate table and a first frame. The apparatus includes a base frame configured to support the second chamber, and an intermediate frame coupled to the base frame. The intermediate frame is configured to separate the first chamber and the second chamber. The apparatus includes a support coupled to the first frame. The support is configured to support the first chamber through a coupled opening in the intermediate frame and the second chamber. | 01-07-2010 |
| 20100014061 | LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS AND DEVICE MANUFACTURING METHOD - A lithographic projection apparatus is disclosed in which a liquid supply system provides a liquid between the projection system and the substrate. An active drying station is provided to actively remove the liquid from the substrate W or other objects after immersion of all or part of a surface of the substrate W or other objects. | 01-21-2010 |
| 20100038562 | RADIATION SOURCE, LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS AND DEVICE MANUFACTURING METHOD - A radiation source is configured to generate extreme ultraviolet radiation. The radiation source includes a laser constructed and arranged to generate a beam of radiation directed to a plasma generation site where a plasma is generated when the beam of radiation interacts with a fuel, an optical component having a surface that is arranged and positioned to be hit by a droplet of fuel, and a temperature conditioner constructed and arranged to elevate the temperature of the surface. | 02-18-2010 |
| 20100039631 | RADIATION SOURCES AND METHODS OF GENERATING RADIATION - A radiation source is configured to generate radiation. The radiation source includes a fuel droplet generator constructed and arranged to generate a stream of droplets of fuel that are directed to a plasma generation site; a laser constructed and arranged to generate a laser beam that is directed to the plasma generation site, an angle between the direction of movement of the stream of droplets and the direction of the laser beam being less than about 90°; and a collector constructed and arranged to collect radiation generated by a plasma formed at the plasma formation site when the beam of radiation and a droplet collide. The collector is configured to reflect the radiation substantially along an optical axis of the radiation source. The laser beam is directed to the plasma generation site through an aperture provided in the collector. | 02-18-2010 |
| 20100044591 | RADIATION SOURCE, LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS AND DEVICE MANUFACTURING METHOD - A radiation source includes a beam generator configured to generate a radiation beam to be used to produce a radiation output of the radiation source, and a beam monitor, configured to monitor the radiation beam. A lithographic apparatus includes the radiation source. A device manufacturing method includes generating a first type of radiation by utilizing a beam of a second type of radiation, monitoring a quality of the second type of radiation, and projecting a patterned beam of the first type of radiation onto a substrate. | 02-25-2010 |
| 20100053576 | RADIATION SOURCE, LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS AND DEVICE MANUFACTURING METHOD - A radiation source is configured to produce extreme ultraviolet radiation. The radiation source includes a chamber in which, in use, a plasma is generated, and an evaporation surface configured to evaporate a material formed as a by-product from the plasma and that is emitted to the evaporation surface. A method for removing a by-product material in or from a plasma radiation source of a lithographic apparatus includes evaporating a material which, in use, is emitted to that surface from the plasma. | 03-04-2010 |
| 20100053581 | RADIATION SOURCE AND LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS - A radiation source is configured to generate extreme ultraviolet radiation. The radiation source includes a droplet generator constructed and arranged to generate fuel droplets, a heater constructed and arranged to heat the fuel droplets following generation of the fuel droplets by the droplet generator, and reduce the mass of fuel present in the fuel droplets and/or reduce the density of the fuel droplets, and a radiation emitter constructed and arranged to direct radiation onto the fuel droplets that have been heated by the heater to generate the extreme ultraviolet radiation. | 03-04-2010 |
| 20100085547 | SOURCE MODULE, RADIATION SOURCE AND LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS - A radiation source is configured to generate extreme ultraviolet radiation. The radiation source includes a fuel supply configured to supply a fuel to a plasma formation site; a laser configured to emit a beam of radiation to the plasma formation site so that a plasma that emits extreme ultraviolet radiation is generated when the beam of radiation impacts the fuel; a fuel particulate interceptor constructed and arranged to shield at least part of the radiation source from fuel particulates that are emitted by the plasma, the fuel particulate interceptor comprising a first portion and a second portion, the second portion being positioned closer to the plasma formation site than the first portion, and the first portion being rotatable; and a fuel particulate remover constructed and arranged to remove fuel particulates from a surface of the fuel particulate interceptor and to direct the fuel particulates towards a collection location. | 04-08-2010 |
| 20100085551 | LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS AND DEVICE MANUFACTURING METHOD - A lithographic apparatus includes an illumination system configured to condition a radiation beam; a support constructed to support a patterning device, the patterning device being capable of imparting the radiation beam with a pattern in its cross-section to form a patterned radiation beam; a mirror block provided with a substrate table constructed to hold a substrate; and a projection system configured to project the patterned radiation beam onto a target portion of the substrate, wherein the mirror block is constructed and arranged to reduce slip between the mirror block and the substrate table. Slip can occur if the acceleration of the mirror block is high and the substrate table slips locally with respect to the mirror block. Slip may lead to exposure errors since the position of the substrate is no longer determined with the desired accuracy. | 04-08-2010 |
| 20100110405 | RADIATION SOURCE AND LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS - A source configured to generate EUV radiation includes a fuel droplet generator configured to deliver a droplet of fuel to an interaction point, optics configured to deliver fuel vaporizing and exciting radiation to the interaction point to generate a plasma, and a collector arranged to collect EUV radiation emitted by the plasma. The optics are arranged such that in use the fuel vaporizing and exciting radiation is incident upon more than one side of the fuel droplet at the interaction point. | 05-06-2010 |
| 20100149516 | Lithographic Apparatus and A Method to Compensate for the Effect of Disturbances on the Projection System of a Lithographic Apparatus - Embodiments of the invention provide a lithographic apparatus including an illumination system configured to condition a radiation beam, a patterning device support constructed to support a patterning device, the patterning device being capable of imparting the radiation beam with a pattern in its cross-section to form a patterned radiation beam, a substrate table constructed to hold a substrate, a projection system configured to project the patterned radiation beam onto a target portion of the substrate, an active air mount to support the projection system, the active air mount including at least one actuator, and a feed-forward device, the feed-forward device being configured to provide on the basis of a set-point signal of a movable object, a feed-forward signal to the at least one actuator, wherein the feed-forward signal is designed to decrease a disturbance effect on the projection system due to movement of the movable object. | 06-17-2010 |
| 20100157267 | RADIATION SOURCE, LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS AND DEVICE MANUFACTURING METHOD - A radiation source for generation of extreme ultraviolet radiation or use in high resolution lithography includes a plasma formation site where fuel is contacted by a radiation beam to form a plasma generating EUV radiation. A mirrored collector collects and reflects the EUV radiation generated at a first focus towards a second focus. A contamination barrier is positioned such the periphery of the contamination barrier does not occlude more than 50% of the solid angle subtended by the mirror at the second focus, such that EUV radiation reflected by the collector mirror is not excessively attenuated by passing through the contamination barrier. The contamination barrier serves to trap fuel material such as ions, atoms, molecules or nanodroplets from the plasma to prevent their deposition onto the collector mirror where they reduce the mirror's effective lifetime. | 06-24-2010 |
| 20100182579 | LASER DEVICE - A laser device includes a seed laser, an amplifier, a detector, and an optical element arranged to direct radiation emitted by the seed laser towards a plasma generation site. The optical element is arranged to direct towards the detector amplified spontaneous emission radiation which has been emitted by the seed laser and has been reflected from a droplet of fuel material. The detector is arranged to trigger generation of a laser radiation pulse by the seed laser when the reflected amplified spontaneous emission radiation is detected. | 07-22-2010 |
| 20100220335 | LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR CALIBRATING THE SAME - A method for calibrating an encoder in a lithographic apparatus, the encoder including a sensor and a grating, the encoder configured to measure a position of a moveable support of the lithographic apparatus, the method including measuring a position of the moveable support using an interferometer; and calibrating the encoder based on the position of the moveable support measured by the interferometer. | 09-02-2010 |
| 20100231130 | RADIATION SOURCE, LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS, AND DEVICE MANUFACTURING METHOD - A plasma radiation source includes a vessel configured to catch a source material transmitted along a trajectory, and a decelerator configured to reduce a speed of the source material in a section of the trajectory downstream of a plasma initiation site. | 09-16-2010 |
| 20110013157 | LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS COMPRISING A MAGNET, METHOD FOR THE PROTECTION OF A MAGNET IN A LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS AND DEVICE MANUFACTURING METHOD - A lithographic apparatus includes a magnet being contained in a protective enclosure, the protective enclosure being arranged to protect the magnet from contact with a H | 01-20-2011 |
| 20110013166 | RADIATION SYSTEM AND LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS - A radiation system includes a target material supply configured to supply droplets of target material along a trajectory, and a laser system that includes an amplifier and optics. The optics are configured to establish a first beam path which passes through the amplifier and through a first location on the trajectory, and to establish a second beam path which passes through the amplifier and through a second location on the trajectory. The laser system is configured to generate a first pulse of laser radiation when photons emitted from the amplifier are reflected along the first beam path by a droplet of target material at the first location on the trajectory. The laser system is configured to generate a second pulse of laser radiation when photons emitted from the amplifier are reflected along the second beam path by the droplet of target material at the second location on the trajectory. | 01-20-2011 |
| 20110026002 | EUV RADIATION GENERATION APPARATUS - An EUV radiation generation apparatus includes an optical gain medium configured to produce laser radiation for interaction with a target material to produce an EUV radiation-emitting plasma, and a structure defining an aperture through which the laser radiation may pass. The structure includes a radiation guide having an outer surface constructed and arranged to guide the laser radiation away from the optical gain medium. | 02-03-2011 |
| 20110075154 | LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR CALIBRATING THE SAME - A method for calibrating an encoder in a lithographic apparatus, the encoder including a sensor and a grating, the encoder configured to measure a position of a moveable support of the lithographic apparatus, the method including measuring a position of the moveable support using an interferometer; and calibrating the encoder based on the position of the moveable support measured by the interferometer. | 03-31-2011 |
| 20110096311 | LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS AND PATTERNING DEVICE - A lithographic apparatus includes a support to support a patterning device, the patterning device being capable of imparting a radiation beam with a pattern in its cross-section to form a patterned radiation beam, a substrate table constructed to hold a substrate, and a projection system configured to project the patterned radiation beam onto a target portion of the substrate. The lithographic apparatus includes a projection transfer measurement system to measure an optical projection transfer information of the projection system. The projection transfer measurement arrangement includes: an optical device to direct a measurement beam into the projection system during a scanning movement, a detector to detect the measurement beam having passed through the projection system during the scanning movement, and a measurement processor to determine the optical projection transfer information from the detected measurement beam. The optical device and the detector are arranged at an upstream end of the projection system. | 04-28-2011 |
| 20110116066 | LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS AND DEVICE MANUFACTURING METHOD - A position measurements system to measure a position of a movable object with respect to another object includes two or more one dimensional (1D) encoder heads mounted on one of the movable object and the other object and each capable of emitting a measurement beam along a measurement direction, one or more reference targets mounted on the other of the movable object and the other object, each reference target including a planar surface with a grid or grating to cooperate with the two or more one dimensional (1D) encoder heads, and a processor to calculate a position of the object on the basis of outputs of the two or more 1D encoder heads, wherein the measurement direction of each of the two or more 1D encoder heads is non-perpendicular to the planar surface of the respective reference target. | 05-19-2011 |
| 20110143288 | RADIATION SOURCE, LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS AND DEVICE MANUFACTURING METHOD - A lithographic apparatus includes a source configured to generate a radiation beam comprising desired radiation and undesired radiation using a plasma, an illumination system configured to condition the radiation beam and to receive hydrogen gas during operation of the lithographic apparatus, and a support structure constructed to hold a patterning device. The patterning device is capable of imparting the radiation beam with a pattern in its cross-section to form a patterned radiation beam. A substrate table is constructed to hold a substrate, and a projection system is configured to project the patterned radiation beam onto a target portion of the substrate. The lithographic apparatus is configured such that the radiation beam on entering the projection system includes at least 50% of the undesired radiation that is generated by the plasma and includes wavelengths of radiation that interact with the hydrogen gas to generate hydrogen radicals. | 06-16-2011 |
| 20110164236 | RADIATION SOURCE AND LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS - A radiation source is configured to generate extreme ultraviolet radiation. The radiation source includes a plasma formation site located at a position in which a fuel will be contacted by a beam of radiation to form a plasma, an outlet configured to allow gas to exit the radiation source, and a contamination trap at least partially located inside the outlet. The contamination trap is configured to trap debris particles that are generated with the formation of the plasma. | 07-07-2011 |
