Apparatus and methods for keeping immersion fluid adjacent to an optical assembly during wafer exchange in an immersion lithography machine
US8237911B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Oct 29, 2007 |
| Grant date | Aug 7, 2012 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 8, 2028 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG03F7/70733
- WIPO fieldOptics
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
Apparatus and methods keep immersion liquid in a space adjacent to an optical assembly. An optical assembly projects an image onto a substrate supported adjacent to the optical assembly by a substrate table. An insertion member insertable into the space between the optical assembly and the substrate, the substrate table, or both, divides the immersion liquid into a first portion and a second portion, the first portion disposed between the optical assembly and the insertion member, and the second portion disposed between the insertion member and the substrate, the substrate table, or both. The insertion member keeps the optical assembly in contact with the first portion when the substrate is moved away from being disposed adjacent to the optical assembly.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.