JP2001102286A - Aligner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an aligner which is very tolerant to floor vibration. SOLUTION: On a base plate 12 installed on a floor 11 as an installation surface, an exposure main body part 13 which performs exposure is supported with a vibration-proof pad composed of a spring element K and a damper element C. On the base plate 12, an acceleration sensor 40 for detecting the vibration of the base plate 12 is provided, and a vibration suppression controller 41 controls the operation of an actuator 39 according to the detected value of the acceleration sensor 40, so as to reduce vibration transmitted to the exposure main body part 13.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an exposure apparatus used for manufacturing semiconductor devices, liquid crystal displays, plasma displays, thin-film magnetic heads, image pickup devices (CCD), etc. The present invention relates to an exposure apparatus in which measures are taken.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a photolithography process, which is one of the manufacturing processes of a semiconductor device, an exposure apparatus for exposing and transferring a pattern formed on a reticle (or mask) onto a wafer coated with a photoresist is used. You. As such an exposure apparatus, a stepper, which is a reduction projection type exposure apparatus for reducing and projecting a pattern on a reticle onto a shot area on a wafer by a projection lens and exposing the same, is often used.

As a stepper, a step-and-repeat type in which a pattern is collectively exposed to a shot area on a wafer, and the wafer is sequentially moved to repeat exposure for another shot area, or recently, a projection lens is used. From the viewpoint of miniaturization, etc., the reticle and wafer are simultaneously scanned at the time of exposure, illuminated with slit light or rectangular light with a length close to the lens diameter, and the step-and-scan method is repeated for each shot area Have also been developed and are being put to practical use.

[0004] In such an exposure apparatus, exposure accuracy is reduced due to the occurrence of vibration, which is an obstacle to miniaturization of semiconductor devices and the like and speeding up of processing. In order to prevent this, the exposure main body for performing the exposure processing is provided with a base plate (support substrate) serving as a reference of the apparatus on a floor surface, and is installed on the base plate via a vibration isolator.

As a vibration isolator, a passive type in which an exposure main body is supported on a base plate by a spring element and a damper element, and a vibration of a low frequency component which is difficult to remove with the passive type are suppressed. For use in combination with active-type devices. The active type anti-vibration device detects the vibration generated in the exposure main body by an acceleration sensor, controls the operation of an actuator interposed between the base plate and the exposure main body based on the detected value, and controls the exposure main body. To actively reduce the vibration.

[0006]

By the way, the specifications such as the rigidity of the floor on which the exposure apparatus is installed are determined in relation to the required exposure accuracy and the like. It is advantageous to use a looser one because of the relationship with the clean room construction cost.

However, in the prior art, when the floor itself vibrates due to the reaction force caused by the movement of the stage of the exposure apparatus being transmitted to the floor via the base plate, etc., the vibration exposure main body is exposed. Because it is not possible to effectively suppress transmission to the floor, the allowable range for floor vibration is narrow, and it is necessary to ensure sufficient rigidity of the floor, etc.
There is a problem that the construction cost of the clean room is increased or the installation place is restricted. In addition, there is a problem that high-speed processing cannot be performed because it is necessary to sufficiently wait for attenuation of floor vibration in order to accurately form a fine pattern.

Further, when an earthquake or the like exceeding the allowable vibration amount in the specifications of the exposure apparatus occurs, there is a problem that the exposure main body vibrates extremely greatly and may cause fatal damage to the apparatus. Was.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of such problems of the prior art, and has as its object to provide an exposure apparatus which has a wide allowable range for floor vibration, and which can realize high-speed processing with high accuracy. Another object of the present invention is to prevent the exposure apparatus from being fatally damaged due to the occurrence of an earthquake or the like.

[0010]

Hereinafter, in the examples shown in this section, for ease of understanding, each constituent element of the present invention will be described with typical reference numerals shown in the drawings of the embodiments. The configuration of the present invention or each component requirement is not limited to those restricted by these reference numerals.

An exposure apparatus according to the present invention for achieving the above object provides a support substrate (12) installed on an installation surface (11).
Above the exposure main body (1) via the vibration isolator (K, C, 39)
In the exposure apparatus supporting 3), a vibration detection device (40) for detecting vibration of the support substrate and the vibration detection device may be configured to reduce the vibration transmitted to the exposure body based on a value detected by the vibration detection device. A control device (41) for controlling the vibration isolator (39).

According to the present invention, the vibration of the supporting substrate on which the exposure main body is installed is detected, and the vibration isolator is controlled so as to reduce the transmission of the vibration to the exposure main body. In addition, the transmission of the vibration generated in the support substrate to the exposure main body is suppressed. Therefore, the allowable range for floor vibration can be widened, so that the construction cost of a clean room or the like can be reduced, or the restriction on the installation of the exposure apparatus can be reduced, and the fine pattern can be exposed with high precision and high speed. Can be formed.

In this case, there is further provided a storage device in which a threshold value relating to the vibration generated in the support substrate is stored and held in advance, and the control device determines that the vibration detected by the vibration detection device exceeds the threshold value. In this case, it is possible to control such that the exposure processing by the exposure main body unit is stopped or the operation of the vibration isolator is stopped. Thus, when a large vibration is generated in the support substrate due to the occurrence of an earthquake or the like, it is possible to prevent a defective product from being manufactured or to prevent a vibration isolator from being damaged.

In the above case, there is provided an elastic vibration detecting device for detecting elastic vibration of the support substrate,
The control device may perform the control based on a value obtained by removing a component corresponding to the elastic vibration detected by the elastic vibration detecting device from a value detected by the vibration detecting device. When an elastic vibration of the support substrate (a vibration in the first to several natural vibration modes generated in the support substrate due to the elastic force of the support substrate or the like) is detected and the control for vibration suppression is performed, a resonance (resonance) occurs. In some cases, the exposure main body may be vibrated positively, but by taking such measures, this point is improved, and the influence of the floor vibration on the exposure main body can be more reliably prevented. Become like

[0015]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the overall configuration of an exposure apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a front view thereof, FIG. 3 is a view showing the configuration of a reticle stage, and FIG. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a configuration of a unit, and FIG. The exposure apparatus of this embodiment is a step-and-scan type reduction projection type exposure apparatus.

In these figures, reference numeral 11 denotes a floor as an installation surface, on which a plate-like base plate (support substrate) 12 is installed by being supported at three points from the viewpoint of stable support. I have. The base plate 12 is made of a highly rigid member such as ceramics and iron. On the base plate 12, an exposure main body 13 is installed via a mount section 14 which constitutes an anti-vibration (vibration suppression) device in the Z direction.

The main frame (first column) 15 of the exposure main body 13 comprises a rectangular plate-shaped base 16, four columns 17, and a wafer stage base 18. The main frame 15 is supported by a pair of mounting portions 14 on the right and left sides of the base portion 16 near four corners thereof, which are disposed and fixed on the base plate 12. The detailed configuration of the mount unit 14 will be described later.

On a wafer stage surface plate 18 integrally fixed to the lower end of the column portion 17 of the main frame 15,
A wafer stage unit WS for positioning and moving a wafer (photosensitive substrate) W to be exposed is provided.

The wafer stage unit WS
Is a device that has a movable part (stage) on which the wafer W is mounted and fixed, and moves the wafer W slightly in the Z direction and two-dimensionally moves in the X and Y directions. The movement of the movable part of wafer stage unit WS is controlled based on a control signal from an exposure control device.

More specifically, wafer stage unit WS is provided with a stator (stator), a slider (mover) movable with respect to the stator, and a stage as a movable portion attached to the slider. The stator and the slider cooperating therewith can be provided by a linear motor. In particular, in this embodiment, the stator is provided movably on the wafer stage base 18 by a slide mechanism such as an air bearing. However, the stator may be fixed on the wafer stage base 18. The wafer W having the upper surface coated with the photosensitive agent is held on the stage by, for example, sucking and sucking the entire back surface.

A through hole is formed in a substantially central portion of the base portion 16 of the main frame 15, and a projection optical system PL is disposed so as to pass through the through hole. The projection optical system PL is configured by holding a plurality of lenses and the like in a lens barrel. The projection optical system PL includes, in order from the bottom, a first invar 19a, a second invar 19b, and a third invar 19b.
Projection system support member (sub-frame) 19 composed of c
And is fixed to the base portion 16 via the. The first invar 19a, the second invar 19b, and the third invar 19c are integrally fixed to each other while holding the projection optical system PL therein.
The first invar 19a is firmly fixed to the base portion 16 in a state where the first invar 19a is inserted into the through hole of the base portion 16.

Third invar 19c of projection system support member 19
A reticle stage unit RS as a reticle moving device for moving a reticle R on which a circuit pattern is formed is attached to the upper surface of the reticle stage unit RS. As shown in FIG. 3, reticle stage unit RS includes a reticle coarse movement stage unit RCS and a reticle fine movement stage unit RFS.

The reticle coarse movement stage unit RCS
The vehicle includes a stator (stator) 21, a slider (mover) 22 movable with respect to the stator 21, and a stage 23 mounted on the slider 22. Stator 21
And the slider 22 cooperating therewith can be provided by a linear motor. Particularly in this embodiment, the stator 2
Reference numeral 1 is provided movably on a third invar 19c of the projection system support member 19 by a slide mechanism 24 having an air bearing or the like. However, the stator 21 may be fixed on the third invar 19c. Slider 22
Although the stage 23 and the stage 23 are illustrated as separate members, they may be provided by a common member.

The reticle fine movement stage unit RFS
It is provided on stage 23 of reticle coarse movement stage unit RCS. Reticle fine movement stage unit RF
S denotes a stator (stator) 25, a slider 26 movably provided with respect to the stator 25, and a slider 26.
It has a stage 27 mounted thereon. The stator 25 and the associated slider 26 can be provided by a linear motor. Stator 25 is fixed on stage 23. The slider 26 and the stage 2
Although 7 is shown as a separate member, they may be provided by a common member. The stage 27 has a function of suction-holding a reticle on which a pattern to be transferred is formed on a surface thereof in the vicinity of a peripheral portion thereof with the pattern forming surface thereof facing down.

A gantry (second column) 28 is provided on the base 16 of the main frame 15.
An illumination optical system 29 for converting light emitted from a light source such as an excimer laser (not shown) to predetermined illumination light and guiding the converted light to the reticle R is attached to the reference numeral 8 (see FIG. 2).

Although not shown, a movable mirror is mounted on a stage of the wafer stage unit WS on which the wafer W is mounted, and a main frame 15 is provided with a position detecting device corresponding to the movable mirror. A laser interferometer is provided. The position of the stage is determined by the laser interferometer and the moving mirror at a predetermined resolution (for example, about 0.001 μm).
Is measured by The measured values are supplied to an exposure control device that can be provided by computer hardware and software, and the wafer stage unit WS is controlled based on the measured values, thereby moving the stage during acceleration, deceleration, scanning, and scanning. Positioning is performed.

As shown in FIG. 3, a movable mirror 30 is mounted on a stage 23 of the reticle coarse movement stage unit RCS, and a projection system support member 19 is provided.
A laser interferometer (not shown) as a position detecting device is attached to the (third invar 19c) so as to correspond to the movable mirror 30. The position of the stage 23 is adjusted to a predetermined resolution (for example, 0.001 μm) by the laser interferometer and the moving mirror 30.
m). The measured value is supplied to the exposure control device, and the reticle coarse movement stage unit RCS is controlled based on the measured value, so that the stage 23 is moved, decelerated, moved, and positioned for scanning.

A movable mirror 31 is mounted on a stage 27 for the reticle R, and a laser interferometer (not shown) as a position detecting device is provided on the projection system support member 19 so as to correspond to the movable mirror 31. Is provided. The position of the stage 27 is measured with a predetermined resolution (for example, about 0.001 μm) by the laser interferometer and the movable mirror 31. The measured value is supplied to the exposure control device, and the reticle fine movement stage unit RFS is controlled based on the measured value, so that the stage 27 is moved, positioned and accelerated during deceleration and scanning.

The illumination optical system 29 illuminates a rectangular pattern area of the reticle R with illumination light extending in a slit shape (rectangular shape) in a direction (X direction) orthogonal to the scanning direction (Y direction) at the time of scanning exposure. Irradiate from above. The illumination area on the reticle R of the slit-like illumination light linear in the X direction is located at the center of the circular field on the object plane perpendicular to the optical axis of the projection optical system PL, and has a predetermined reduction magnification β (this Through the projection optical system PL of (1/4) in the embodiment, an image of a part of the pattern of the reticle R in the illumination area is projected onto the wafer W at a predetermined resolution. In this embodiment, a projection optical system PL that projects a reduced inverted image of a pattern formed on a pattern surface of a reticle R onto a wafer is used as the projection optical system PL.

At the time of scanning exposure, a wafer stage unit WS, a reticle coarse movement stage unit RCS, and a reticle fine movement stage unit RFS
In response to the command, the reticle R is moved in the + Y direction by scanning at the speed Vm, and in synchronization with this, the wafer is moved in the −Y direction by the speed Vw (=
β · Vm). At the same speed ratio, the reticle R is moved in the -Y direction and
It may be moved in the Y direction.

At this time, focusing on the reticle coarse movement stage unit RCS, the reaction force acts on the stator 21 as the moving element 22 and the stage 23 accelerate or decelerate, and the stator 21 is a slide mechanism 24 in this embodiment.
As a result, the stator 21 attempts to move in the direction opposite to the direction in which the slider 22 moves, because the projection system support member 19 (third invar 19c) can move the slider 21. A reaction frame mechanism (reaction device) is employed to prevent the influence of the reaction force generated thereby.

The reaction frame mechanism generates a force that is provided on the base plate 12 and stands up on the base plate 12, and a reaction force that is provided on the reaction frame 32 and cancels a reaction force acting on the stator 21 by the movement of the stage 23. And a reaction force device. Particularly, in this embodiment, a passive type reaction frame mechanism is employed, and the reaction force device is provided by a reaction bar 33 made of an elastic body or a rigid body connecting the stator 21 and the reaction frame 32. Thereby, the reaction force accompanying the acceleration or deceleration of the stage 23 is released to the base plate 12 via the reaction bar 33 and the reaction frame 32, so that a certain exposure accuracy is secured. However, such a reaction frame mechanism is not essential, and can be omitted.

An active type reaction frame mechanism may be constituted by providing an actuator (for example, a voice coil motor) which can electrically control the expansion and contraction of the reaction bar 33 in the middle thereof. Similarly, a reaction frame mechanism may be applied to wafer stage unit WS.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, gate-shaped actuator support frames 34 are disposed and fixed near the left and right ends of the base plate 12, respectively. The direction actuators (X direction actuator 35, Y direction actuator 36) are fixed.

The X-direction actuator 35 includes a fixed portion fixed to the actuator support frame 34 and a movable portion fixed to the base portion 16 of the main frame 15, and two X-direction actuators are provided in this embodiment. (Only one is shown in FIG. 1). The Y-direction actuator 36
It is composed of a fixed portion fixed to the actuator support frame 34 and a movable portion fixed to the base portion 16 of the main frame 15, and in this embodiment, two are provided as shown in FIG. . However, the number of these X-direction actuators 35 and Y-direction actuators 36 may be more than one. The actuator support frame 34 has a plurality of position detection sensors 37 for detecting displacements (positions) of the main frame 15 in the X and Y directions.
Is attached.

On the main frame 15, a plurality of acceleration sensors (accelerometers) 3 as vibration detecting devices for detecting vibrations of the main frame 15 in the X, Y and Z directions are provided.
8 (only three are typically shown in FIG. 1). In this embodiment, three acceleration sensors 38 are provided to detect vibration in the Z direction, two to detect vibration in the X direction, and two to detect vibration in the Y direction. . However, the number of the acceleration sensors 38 is not limited to this, and may be larger.

A mount 14 for supporting the exposure main body 13
Are provided in this embodiment in four sets. However, at least three sets are sufficient. As shown in FIG. 4, the mount unit 14 includes a vibration isolation pad including a spring element K such as a coil spring and a damper element C such as an air damper, and a Z-direction actuator (ACT) 39 including a voice coil motor and the like. It is provided with. The actuator 39 may be provided by one or some combination selected from an electromagnetic actuator, an electro-hydraulic control actuator, an electric control fluid cylinder, and a piezoelectric element.

On the base plate 12, a plurality of acceleration sensors (ACC1) 4 serving as vibration detecting devices for detecting vibrations of the base plate 12 in the X, Y and Z directions are provided.
0 (only two are typically shown in FIG. 1). In this embodiment, one of these acceleration sensors 40 is provided in the vicinity of each of the mounts 14 corresponding to each of the mounts 14. However, the number of the acceleration sensors 40 is not limited to this, and may be smaller or larger. When the vibration suppression control is performed only in the Z direction, the acceleration sensors need not be provided in the X direction and the Y direction. Further, in this embodiment, the acceleration sensor 40 for detecting the vibration of the base plate 12 is mounted near each of the mounts 14. However, the acceleration sensor 40 may be provided at a position corresponding to the support point of the floor 11 or near it.

The Z-direction actuator 39 is composed of a fixed portion fixed to the base plate 12 and a movable portion fixed to the base portion 16 of the main frame 15, and can be provided by computer hardware and software. The operation is controlled by the control device 41. The values detected by the acceleration sensors 38 and 40 are supplied to a vibration suppression control device 41.

A reflecting mirror 42 is provided on the lower surface of the main frame 15.
Is mounted, and the reflecting mirror 4 of the base plate 12 is mounted.
2 is provided with a laser interferometer (POS) 43 which is a position detecting device. The laser interferometer 43 and the reflecting mirror 42 measure the displacement (position) of the main frame 15 at a predetermined resolution (for example, about 0.001 μm). The measured value is supplied to the vibration suppression control device 41.

In the exposure apparatus of this embodiment, the Z direction is the direction of the optical axis of the projection optical system PL (the vertical direction in FIG. 2), and the depth direction of the base plate 12 (in the plane perpendicular to the direction). The direction orthogonal to the paper surface of FIG. 2) is defined as the Y direction, and the direction orthogonal to this (the horizontal direction in FIG. 2) is defined as the X direction. The scanning direction is the Y direction.

Next, with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, the vibration suppression control processing by the vibration suppression control device 41 will be described. In the following description, only the Z direction is described, but the same applies to the X direction and the Y direction.

The acceleration signal in the Z direction detected by the acceleration sensors 38 and 40 and the displacement (position) signal detected by the laser interferometer 43 are input to a vibration damping control device 41. Based on the signal, the operation of the Z-direction actuator 39 is controlled so that the vibration is not transmitted from the base plate 12 to the exposure main body 13 as much as possible and the vibration of the exposure main body 13 is minimized.

In order to control the operation of the Z-direction actuator 39 of one mount section 14, the actuator control circuit realized by the vibration damping control device 41 includes a subtractor 44, a PID control circuit, as shown in FIG. (PID) 4
5, switch 46, integrator (1 / S) 47, subtractor 4
8, an amplifier (AMP) 49, a subtractor 50, and other arithmetic circuits (not shown).

The subtractor 44 outputs a target value (here, displacement 0 is a target value) in the Z direction output from a target position output unit (not shown) and a position (displacement) from the laser interferometer (POS) 43. Calculate the position deviation, which is the difference from the information. PID
The control circuit 45 performs a (proportional + integral + differential) control operation using the position deviation output from the subtractor 44 as an operation signal to calculate a speed command value.

The subtractor 48 detects the speed command value from the PID control circuit 45 (when the switch 46 is on, the command value is 0 when the switch 46 is off) and the acceleration sensor (ACC2) 38. A speed deviation, which is a difference from the speed information obtained by integrating the acceleration signal obtained by the integrator 47, is calculated. The amplifier 49 differentiates the speed deviation output from the subtracter 48 to obtain an acceleration signal. The subtracter 50 subtracts the acceleration signal detected by the acceleration sensor (ACC1) 40 from the acceleration signal output from the amplifier 49, and the output becomes a command value for the actuator (ACT) 39. Force is generated.

That is, the actuator 39 is feedback-controlled based on the detection value of the acceleration sensor 38 so that the vibration of the exposure main body 13 is minimized, and the actuator 39 is moved from the base plate 12 to the exposure main body 13 based on the detection value of the acceleration sensor 40. The feedforward control is performed so that the vibration transmitted to is minimized. By turning on or off the switch 46, it is possible to select whether or not to perform control based on displacement (position).

The transfer function used for feed-forward control of the actuator 39 by the acceleration sensor 40 is obtained by actually applying vibration to the floor 11 and modeling the dynamic characteristics of the floor 11. The exposure apparatus of this embodiment has a function of self-learning such dynamic characteristics, and the dynamic characteristics of the floor 11 are learned after the exposure apparatus is actually installed.

By the way, an earthquake may occur during the operation of the exposure apparatus, and depending on the seismic intensity, it is not possible to obtain a good exposure accuracy even if the exposure processing is continued as it is, or in the worst case, an allowable limit. And, for example,
When the stroke limit of the damper of the mount section 14 is exceeded, the laser interferometer 43 may collide with the corresponding reflecting mirror 42, or may be damaged or the like due to the application of large vibration.

Therefore, in this embodiment, since the acceleration sensor 40 for the above-described vibration suppression control is provided on the base plate 12, the detected acceleration is detected by using the detection value of the acceleration sensor 40. If the threshold value is exceeded, a higher-level control device (upper-level processor) that controls the entire exposure apparatus is notified, and the exposure process is interrupted or stopped, or the air of the air damper is exhausted. Protective measures such as mechanically locking the exposure main body 13 are taken. It is assumed that such a threshold value is stored in advance in a storage device (memory) included in the host control device or the vibration suppression control device 41.

Thus, when a large vibration is generated in the base plate 12 due to the occurrence of an earthquake or the like, it is possible to prevent a defective product from being manufactured or to prevent mechanical parts and the like from being damaged.

In the above-described embodiment, the acceleration sensor 40 is attached to the base plate 12 to control the actuator 39 in a feed-forward manner. However, the base plate 12 is elastically vibrated (by vibrating the base plate 12). Vibrating in the first to several natural vibration modes due to its own elastic force or the like. If the acceleration mode is detected by the acceleration sensor 40 and the actuator 39 is operated based on the detected value, the exposure main body 13 may be vibrated positively by resonance. Vibration performance decreases.

Therefore, in this embodiment, a plurality of sensors (for example, acceleration sensors) for detecting the vibration mode of the base plate 12 are provided on the base plate 12, and the vibration mode is detected, which corresponds to the vibration mode. The vibration component is removed from the detection value of the acceleration sensor 40, and the operation of the actuator 39 is controlled based on this. As a result, a reduction in vibration damping performance due to the elastic vibration of the base plate 12 itself is prevented, and higher vibration damping performance can be realized.

The embodiments described above are described for facilitating the understanding of the present invention, and are not described for limiting the present invention. Therefore, each element disclosed in the above embodiment is intended to include all design changes and equivalents belonging to the technical scope of the present invention.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, the wafer stage unit WS is installed on the wafer stage base 18 suspended from the base 16 of the main frame 15. From the base plate 12 independently. In this case, the wafer stage surface plate 18 is supported on the base plate 12 by a mount unit similar to the mount unit 14 described above, and the same vibration suppression control as described above is performed.

In the above-described embodiment, a linear motor is used as a driving device for the wafer stage unit WS and the reticle stage unit RS. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and other types of driving devices, for example,
A so-called planar motor may be employed.

The plane motor moves the stage in the X direction and the Y direction, and finely moves in the Z direction.
This is a driving device that can rotate minutely around the axis, the Y axis, and the Z axis and has a total of six degrees of freedom. Although the detailed illustration of the planar motor is omitted, the configuration is roughly as follows.

That is, in the planar motor, a plurality of drive units are arranged on the upper surface of a bottom yoke made of a ferromagnetic material, and an upper yoke made of a ferromagnetic material is arranged above and separated from the drive unit. The drive unit is configured by appropriately arranging a plurality of coils on a core made of a ferromagnetic material, and a stage having a magnet plate is arranged between the drive unit and the upper yoke. As a result, the stage is held in a floating state, and by appropriately energizing the drive unit, a thrust is generated in a desired direction to realize the six degrees of freedom.

Further, in the above embodiment, the steps
Although the description has been given of the reduction projection type exposure apparatus of the AND scan method, the entire surface of the reticle pattern is irradiated with exposure illumination light while the reticle and the wafer are stationary, and the wafer on which the reticle pattern is to be transferred. Similarly, a step-up-repeat type reduction projection exposure apparatus (stepper) for batch exposure of the above one partitioned area (shot area), and an exposure apparatus of a mirror projection type, proximity type, contact type, etc. The present invention can be applied.

The present invention can also be applied to a step-and-stitch type reduction projection exposure apparatus. In this exposure apparatus, a circuit pattern to be formed on a substrate (for example, a reticle substrate) is enlarged by a reciprocal multiple of the reduction ratio, the enlarged pattern is divided into a plurality of parts, each of which is formed on a plurality of reticles. Each pattern of the reticle is projected in a reduced size, and is connected and transferred on a substrate.
When transferring the pattern of each reticle onto the substrate, either a scanning exposure method or a static exposure method may be adopted.
Further, the connecting portion may not be provided between a plurality of patterns transferred adjacently on the substrate. That is, step and
In the stitch method, a reticle pattern is transferred to a plurality of exposure regions that partially overlap each other on a substrate regardless of the presence or absence of a pattern connection portion.

Further, a semiconductor device, a liquid crystal display,
An exposure apparatus for transferring a circuit pattern to a glass substrate or a silicon wafer for manufacturing a reticle or a mask, as well as an exposure apparatus used for manufacturing a plasma display, a thin-film magnetic head, and an imaging device (such as a CCD). The present invention can also be applied to That is, the present invention is applicable irrespective of the exposure method and application of the exposure apparatus.

As a light source of an exposure apparatus to which the present invention is applied
Is not particularly limited, and a KrF excimer laser (wavelength 24
8 nm), ArF excimer laser (wavelength 193 nm),
F₂ Laser (wavelength 157nm), Kr₂Laser (wavelength
146 nm), KrAr laser (wavelength 134 nm), A
r₂Laser (wavelength 126nm) can be used.
You.

Further, for example, a single-wavelength laser in the infrared or visible range oscillated from a DFB semiconductor laser or a fiber laser is amplified by a fiber amplifier doped with erbium (or both erbium and ytterbium). It is also possible to use a harmonic whose wavelength has been converted to ultraviolet light using a nonlinear optical crystal. Note that an ytterbium-doped fiber laser is used as the single-wavelength oscillation laser.

A reduction projection exposure apparatus using a soft X-ray having a wavelength of about 10 nm as a light source, and an X-ray projection apparatus using a light having a wavelength of about 1 nm as a light source.
Line exposure apparatus, electron beam (E
The present invention can also be applied to an exposure apparatus that performs exposure and drawing on a photosensitive substrate using B) or an ion beam.

In the exposure apparatus of the present embodiment, a plurality of acceleration sensors 40 are provided on the base plate 12, and a stage device including a large number of components such as a reticle stage unit RS and a wafer stage unit WS is assembled. Illumination optical system 2 configured
9 can be manufactured by performing optical adjustment of the projection optical system PL and the projection optical system PL, and further performing overall adjustment (electrical adjustment, operation confirmation, and the like).

It is desirable that the manufacture of the exposure apparatus be performed in a clean room in which the temperature, cleanliness and the like are controlled.

In the meantime, the steps of designing the function and performance of the circuit of the semiconductor element, the step of manufacturing a reticle, the step of manufacturing a silicon wafer based on the design step, and the exposure apparatus described in the above embodiment are used. The reticle is manufactured through a step of transferring a reticle pattern onto a wafer, an assembling step (including a dicing step, a package step, and the like), an inspection step, and the like.

[0069]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Because the allowable range for floor vibration can be widened,
The construction cost of the manufacturing factory can be reduced, or the restriction on the installation location of the exposure apparatus can be reduced. In addition, it is possible to reduce the adverse effect on the exposure accuracy due to the floor vibration, to achieve high accuracy, and to speed up the exposure process. Furthermore, even when an earthquake or the like occurs, it is possible to prevent the exposure apparatus from being fatally damaged.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an overall configuration of an exposure apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing the overall configuration of the exposure apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a reticle stage of the exposure apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a main configuration of a vibration isolator of the exposure apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a main configuration of a control system of a vibration isolator of the exposure apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Installation surface (floor) 12 ... Base plate (support board) 13 ... Exposure main body part 14 ... Mount part 15 ... Main frame 16 ... Base part 18 ... Wafer stage surface plate 19 ... Projection system support member 21 ... Stator 22 ... Slider 23 ... Stage 24 ... Slide mechanism 32 ... Reaction frame mechanism 33 ... Reaction bar 38 ... Acceleration sensor (ACC2) 39 ... Z direction actuator (ACT) 40 ... Acceleration sensor (ACC1) 41 ... Vibration suppression control device 43 ... Laser interferometer (POS) W: Wafer (photosensitive substrate) R: Reticle (mask) WS: Wafer stage unit RS: Reticle stage unit PL: Projection optical system

Claims (16)

[Claims] 1. An exposure apparatus supporting an exposure main body via a vibration isolator on a support substrate installed on an installation surface, wherein: a vibration detection device for detecting vibration of the support substrate; An exposure apparatus, comprising: a control device that controls the vibration isolation device based on the detected value so as to reduce vibration transmitted to the exposure main body. 2. The vibration detecting device includes an acceleration sensor for detecting acceleration in a direction substantially along at least one of three orthogonal directions, and the vibration isolator is generally in a direction in which acceleration is detected by the acceleration sensor. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an actuator that finely moves the exposure main body by displacing the exposure main body. 3. The exposure apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the vibration isolation device includes a vibration isolation pad that attenuates vibration of the exposure main body in a direction substantially along a displacement direction of the actuator. 4. The exposure apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the control device performs feedforward control on the displacement of the actuator based on a value detected by the acceleration sensor. 5. The exposure apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a plurality of the acceleration sensors are dispersed on the support substrate. 6. The support substrate according to claim 5, wherein the support substrate is supported on the installation surface at at least three points, and the acceleration sensors are respectively mounted near the support points of the support substrate. Exposure equipment. 7. A second detector for detecting acceleration in a direction substantially along a displacement direction of the actuator generated in the exposure main body.
5. The controller according to claim 4, wherein the controller performs feedback control on the actuator based on a value detected by the second acceleration sensor so as to reduce vibration generated in the exposure main body. 3. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1. 8. The exposure main unit includes a first stage device that moves a photosensitive substrate as an exposure target, and a second stage device that moves a mask on which a pattern is formed in synchronization with the photosensitive substrate. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: 9. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said first stage device is provided on a main frame supported by said vibration isolator, and said second stage device is provided on a sub-frame fixed to said main frame. 9. The exposure apparatus according to 8. 10. The first stage device includes a stage movably supported by the main frame, and a drive device having a slider attached to the stage and a stator fixed to the main frame. The exposure apparatus according to claim 9, wherein: 11. The first stage device includes a stage movably supported by the main frame, and a driving device having a slider attached to the stage and a stator movably supported by the main frame. The exposure apparatus according to claim 9, further comprising: 12. The second stage device includes: a stage movably supported by the sub-frame; and a driving device having a slider mounted on the stage and a stator movably supported by the sub-frame. The exposure apparatus according to claim 9, further comprising: 13. The device according to claim 11, wherein the first or second stage device includes a reaction device that transmits a reaction force generated in the stator by driving the stage to the base plate. Exposure equipment. 14. A storage device in which a threshold value relating to a vibration generated in the support substrate is stored and held in advance, wherein the control device is configured to, when the vibration detected by the vibration detection device exceeds the threshold value, 2. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the exposure apparatus controls the exposure process to stop. 15. A storage device in which a threshold value relating to a vibration generated in the supporting substrate is stored and held in advance, and wherein the control device is configured to, when the vibration detected by the vibration detecting device exceeds the threshold value, 2. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein control is performed to stop the operation of the vibration isolator. 16. An elastic vibration detecting device for detecting elastic vibration of the support substrate, wherein the control device corresponds to the elastic vibration detected by the elastic vibration detecting device from a value detected by the vibration detecting device. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control is performed based on a value from which components have been removed.