Piezo programmable reticle for EUV lithography
US6356340B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Nov 20, 1998 |
| Grant date | Mar 12, 2002 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Nov 20, 2018 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG03F7/70425
- WIPO fieldOptics
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A programmable reticle has a plurality of addressable pixels. Each of the pixels has one or more elastic elements which underlie a reflective surface, the elements each being activatable for selectively deforming part of the reflective surface. The amount of deformation is such that light reflected from a deformed part destructively interferes with light reflected from the vicinity of the deformed part. The programmable reticle may be used as a part of a scanning lithography system wherein a wafer or other device to be exposed is moved to expose different of its areas, while the pattern on the programmable reticle is changed to reflect the desired exposure pattern of the area of the wafer currently being exposed. In such a scanning system, any given point on the wafer will be exposed using a number of different pixels on the reticle; therefore the effect of a defective pixel will be “diluted” or “voted out” by the other, non-defective pixels also involved in exposing that spot.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.