JP2005079367A - Stage system and exposure device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a stage system that can improve the control precision of the position of a stage by suppressing the reaction force generated when the stage is driven. <P>SOLUTION: The slider 23 of the stage system is slidably slid on a guide shaft 25. In the slider 23, a pressure chamber 40 is formed in a dug state. In the pressure chamber 40, tongue-like pressure pads 43 and 45 are respectively attached to the upper and lower surfaces of the central part of the guide shaft 25. In this stage system, the guide shaft 25 to which the pressure pads 43 and 45 are attached also works as a counter mass and moves to cancel the driving reaction force generated when the stage is driven. Consequently, the transmission of the driving reaction force of the stage to the outside can be prevented while the total centroidal position TG of the stage system is roughly held at a fixed position. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a stage apparatus for placing and moving a reticle, a wafer, and the like, and to an exposure apparatus provided with such a stage apparatus. In particular, the present invention relates to a stage apparatus that can suppress reaction force due to stage driving and improve position control accuracy.

  In an exposure apparatus used for lithography of semiconductor devices or the like, a stage apparatus for mounting a reticle, a wafer, or the like is provided. In this type of stage apparatus, the driving reaction force of the driving force generated when the stage main body is moved is transmitted to the structure of the exposure apparatus, and the structure of the exposure apparatus may vibrate. If this vibration is transmitted to the optical system of the exposure apparatus, it can be a cause of positional deviation of the transfer pattern image and a decrease in contrast. For this reason, in the exposure apparatus, several measures are taken to avoid the adverse effects of the stage reaction force.

  For example, in a single-axis stage device of an optical exposure apparatus, a so-called counter mass type reaction force processing mechanism that uses less momentum and uses less energy is used. However, such a counter-mass type reaction force processing mechanism of the single-axis stage device is difficult to apply to the two-axis stage, or is not easy to use in a vacuum. For this reason, the reaction force processing of the two-axis stage apparatus is currently causing the vibration of the exposure apparatus to escape to the floor via a shock absorber or the like that acts as a low-pass filter.

  The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a stage apparatus that can suppress reaction force due to stage driving and improve the position control accuracy of the stage.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a first stage apparatus of the present invention is a stage apparatus that includes a gas pressure actuated drive mechanism and moves and positions the stage, and is movably supported with respect to the base of the stage apparatus A guide shaft that also serves as a counter mass; a stage that slides along the axial direction of the guide shaft and in which a pressure chamber into which working gas is introduced is formed; and the guide shaft that divides the pressure chamber A pressure receiving plate attached to the counter, and the stage is driven along the guide shaft by controlling the gas pressure in the pressure chamber divided by the pressure receiving plate, and the reaction force of the stage is driven by the counter The guide shaft also serving as a mass moves in the opposite direction to the stage and cancels.

  According to the first aspect of the invention, the guide shaft to which the pressure receiving plate is attached also serves as the counter mass, and the counter mass / guide shaft moves so as to cancel the driving reaction force when driving the stage. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the driving reaction force of the stage from being transmitted to the outside while keeping the total center of gravity position of the stage system at a substantially constant position.

  The second stage apparatus of the present invention includes a guide driving mechanism for two axes for driving in the X-axis direction and driving in the Y-axis direction, which is driven by gas pressure, and moves the stage in a certain plane (XY plane). A positioning stage device, wherein each guide drive mechanism is supported so as to be movable with respect to the base of the stage device, and slides along the axial direction of the guide shaft that also serves as a counter mass. A slider formed with a pressure chamber into which a working gas is introduced, and a pressure receiving plate attached to the guide shaft that divides the pressure chamber, and the gas pressure in the pressure chamber divided by the pressure receiving plate By controlling the slider, the slider is driven along the guide shaft, and the driving reaction force is canceled by the guide shaft also serving as the counter mass moving in the opposite direction to the slider. It is characterized by that.

  In the second invention, similarly to the first invention, the counter mass / guide shaft cancels the driving reaction force when driving the stage, so that the total gravity center position of the stage system is maintained at a substantially constant position. However, it is possible to prevent the driving reaction force of the stage from being transmitted to the outside.

  In a more specific aspect of the second stage apparatus of the present invention, the guide shaft includes two parallel X guide shafts extending in the X-axis direction and two parallel guide shafts extending in the Y-axis direction. The stage body of the stage is connected to the X guide shafts, the X sliders that slide on the Y guide shafts, and the Y slider, and the pressure chamber includes the X slider. , Can be formed inside the Y slider.

  Furthermore, in another more specific aspect of the second stage apparatus of the present invention, the guide shaft includes two parallel guide shafts (first guide shaft) extending in the X-axis direction or the Y-axis direction. ) And one guide shaft (second guide shaft) extending in a direction orthogonal to the two guide shafts, and the opposite ends of the first guide shaft are connected by connecting members, respectively. A first slider that slides on each of the first guide shafts, and a second slider that slides on the second guide shafts, the second guide shafts Is disposed between the first sliders, a stage main body of the stage is connected to the second slider, and the pressure chambers of the first and second sliders are connected to each other. Be formed inside it can.

The stage apparatus of the present invention may further comprise position detecting means for detecting the position of the guide shaft, and position correcting means for correcting the position of the guide shaft.
In this case, the position of the guide shaft can be corrected by the position detection means and the position correction means. As the position correction means, an actuator, a spring, or the like can be used.

The stage apparatus of the present invention may further include a limiting actuator that limits the movement of the guide shaft by driving in the direction opposite to the drive direction of the stage in or near the guide shaft.
In this case, the movement amount of the counter mass / guide shaft can be limited by the limiting actuator. Therefore, there is an advantage that a degree of freedom can be given to the setting of the mass of the counter mass.

In the stage apparatus of the present invention, a hollow portion is formed in the guide shaft, and an internal slider that moves in a direction opposite to the driving direction of the stage to cancel the driving reaction force of the stage is provided in the hollow portion. Can be.
In this case, the guide shaft can be fixed, and there is an advantage that the movement of the slider can be controlled more accurately.

  An exposure apparatus according to the present invention is an exposure apparatus that transfers a pattern onto a sensitive substrate, and includes the stage device according to any one of the above aspects.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the stage apparatus etc. which can suppress the reaction force by a stage drive and can improve a position control precision can be provided.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, it demonstrates, referring drawings.
First, an example of a charged particle beam (electron beam) exposure apparatus capable of mounting the stage apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The stage apparatus according to the present invention can be used in the atmosphere, and can be used not only for a charged particle beam exposure apparatus but also for various applications.

FIG. 7 is a diagram schematically showing an electron beam exposure apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
An illumination optical system barrel 101 is shown in the upper part of the electron beam exposure apparatus 100 of FIG. A vacuum pump 102 is connected to the illumination optical system barrel 101, and the inside of the barrel 101 is evacuated. An electron gun 103 is disposed above the illumination optical system lens tube 101 and emits an electron beam downward. Under the electron gun 103, a condenser lens 104a and an electron beam deflector 104b are arranged. In the figure, the condenser lens 104a has one stage, but an actual illumination optical system is provided with a plurality of stages of lenses, a beam shaping aperture, and the like.

  A reticle chamber 118 placed on a surface plate 116 is disposed below the illumination optical system barrel 101. The reticle chamber 118 is evacuated by a vacuum pump (not shown). A reticle stage 111 is disposed on the surface plate 116 in the reticle chamber 118. The reticle R is fixed to a chuck 110 provided on the reticle stage 111 by electrostatic adsorption or the like. The reticle stage 111 is connected to a driving device 112 shown on the left side of the drawing. The actual driving device 112 is incorporated in the reticle stage 111. The driving device 112 is connected to the control device 115 via the driver 114.

  The reticle stage 111 is provided with a laser interferometer 113 shown on the right side of the drawing. The laser interferometer 113 is connected to the control device 115. When the position information of the reticle stage 111 measured by the laser interferometer 113 is input to the control device 115, a command is sent from the control device 115 to the driver 114 to set the position of the reticle stage 111 as the target position, and the drive device 112 is driven. As a result, the position of reticle stage 111 can be accurately feedback controlled in real time.

  The electron beam emitted from the electron gun 103 of the illumination optical system barrel 101 is converged by the condenser lens 104a. Subsequently, each of the small regions (subfields) of the reticle R that is sequentially scanned (scanned) in the horizontal direction in the figure by the deflector 104b and adsorbed on the reticle stage 111 in the reticle chamber 118 (in the field of view of the optical system). Lighting is performed.

  A projection optical system lens barrel 121 is disposed on the lower surface side of the surface plate 116. A vacuum pump 122 is connected to the projection optical system barrel 121, and the inside of the barrel 121 is evacuated. In the projection optical system barrel 121, a projection optical system 124 including a condenser lens (projection lens) 124a, a deflector 124b, and the like, and a wafer W are arranged. In the figure, the condenser lens 124a has one stage, but an actual projection optical system is provided with a plurality of stages of lenses, aberration correction lenses, and coils.

  A wafer chamber 138 placed on a surface plate 136 is disposed below the projection optical system lens barrel 121. The inside of the wafer chamber 138 is evacuated by a vacuum pump (not shown). A wafer stage 131 is disposed on the surface plate 136 in the wafer chamber 138. The wafer W is fixed to a chuck 130 provided on the wafer stage 131 by electrostatic adsorption or the like. A driving device 132 shown on the left side of the drawing is connected to the wafer stage 131. The actual driving device 132 is incorporated in the wafer stage 131. The driving device 132 is connected to the control device 115 via a driver 134.

  A laser interferometer 133 shown on the right side of the drawing is attached to the wafer stage 131. The laser interferometer 133 is connected to the control device 115. When the position information of the wafer stage 131 measured by the laser interferometer 133 is input to the control device 115, a command is sent from the control device 115 to the driver 134 to set the position of the wafer stage 131 as the target position, and the driving device. 132 is driven. As a result, the position of the wafer stage 131 can be accurately feedback controlled in real time.

  The electron beam that has passed through the reticle R on the reticle stage 111 in the reticle chamber 118 is converged by the condenser lens 124 a in the projection optical system barrel 121. The electron beam that has passed through the condenser lens 124a is deflected by the deflector 124b, and an image of the reticle R is formed at a predetermined position on the wafer W.

Next, the stage apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a stage apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a movement example (upper right movement in the figure) of the stage device.
In the following description, the X direction and the Y direction refer to the respective arrow directions shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.
1 and 2 show the stage device 1 placed on the above-described surface plate 136 (see FIG. 7). This stage apparatus 1 corresponds to the wafer stage 131 in the exposure apparatus of FIG.

  A stage main body 10 is provided at the center of the stage apparatus 1. The stage body 10 is composed of upper and lower stages 11 and 12. The upper stage 11 is attached to the lower stage 12 via a leaf spring (not shown) or the like. A wafer holding device (not shown) such as an electrostatic chuck for fixing the wafer W is provided at the center of the upper stage 11.

  On the two side edges of the upper surface of the upper stage 11, an X mirror 13 (upper side in the figure) arranged along the X direction and a Y mirror 14 (left side in the figure) arranged along the Y direction are provided. ing. The X mirror 13 faces the interferometer 15 arranged outside the stage apparatus 1 (upper side in the figure), and the Y mirror 14 faces the interferometer 16 arranged outside the stage apparatus 1 (left side in the figure). Yes. The interferometers 15 and 16 detect the position and orientation of the stage main body 10 in the X direction and Y direction by receiving laser light or the like toward the X mirror 13 and Y mirror 14 and receiving the reflected light.

  The lower stage 12 of the stage body 10 is fitted to a Y-axis movement guide 21 extending in the Y-axis direction via a gas bearing (not shown) or the like. At both ends of the Y-axis movement guide 21, X-axis sliders 23 (23A, 23B) that can slide in the X direction are provided. Each X-axis slider 23 is slidably fitted to an X guide shaft 25 (25A, 25B) extending in the X-axis direction via a gas bearing (not shown). Although described later in detail with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, these X guide shafts 25 also serve as counter masses.

  Guide support portions 27 are provided near both ends of each X guide shaft 25 via gas bearings (not shown). The guide support portion 27 includes a pair of an outer support plate 27a and an inner support plate 27b that face each other in the Y-axis direction with the X guide shaft 25 interposed therebetween. The X guide shafts 25 are slidably supported on the surface plate 136 of FIG. 7 through the guide support portions 27 in a non-contact manner.

  An X-axis movement guide 31 extending in the X-axis direction is fitted to the upper stage 11 via a gas bearing (not shown). At both ends of the X-axis movement guide 31, Y-axis sliders 33 (33A, 33B) that can slide in the Y direction are provided. Both Y-axis sliders 33 are slidably fitted to Y guide shafts 35 (35A, 35B) extending in the Y-axis direction via gas bearings (not shown). Although details will be described later with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, these Y guide shafts 35 also serve as counter masses.

  Near both ends of each Y guide shaft 35, guide support portions 37 are provided via gas bearings (not shown). The guide support portion 37 includes a pair of an outer support plate 37a and an inner support plate 37b facing each other in the X-axis direction with the Y guide shaft 35 interposed therebetween. The Y guide shafts 35 are slidably supported on the surface plate 136 of FIG. 7 through the guide support portions 37 in a non-contact manner.

Next, a configuration around the drive unit (slider and counter mass / guide shaft) in the above-described stage apparatus 1 will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a drive unit of the stage apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. (A) is a figure which shows the time of right movement, (B) is a figure which shows the time of left movement.
3A and 3B depict one of the above-described four slider / guide shaft pairs (23A and 25A, 23B and 25B, 33A and 35A, and 33B and 35B). In this figure, the code of the slider is 23 and the code of the guide shaft is 25. The basic structures of the X-axis slider guide shaft and the Y-axis slider guide shaft are the same. Each slider guide shaft is configured to be driven independently.

  As described above, the slider 23 is slidably fitted to the guide shaft (counter mass / guide shaft) 25 also serving as a counter mass via a gas bearing (not shown). Both end portions of the counter mass / guide shaft 25 are supported by the guide support portion 27 via a gas bearing (not shown).

  As shown in FIG. 3, a pressure chamber 40 is dug inside the slider 23. In the pressure chamber 40 of the slider 23, tongue-shaped pressure receiving plates 43 (upper side) and 45 (lower side) are respectively mounted on the upper and lower surfaces of the central portion of the counter mass / guide shaft 25 so as to rise. These pressure receiving plates 43 and 45 extend in a plane orthogonal to the sliding direction (left and right direction in FIG. 3) of the slider 23 / counter mass / guide shaft 25. The pressure receiving plates 43 and 45 move integrally with the counter mass / guide shaft 25 and slide while being in sliding contact with the inner surface of the slider 23. By these two pressure receiving plates 43 and 45, the pressure chamber 40 in the slider 23 is divided into a right pressure chamber P1 and a left pressure chamber P2. A supply / exhaust system (not shown) is connected to each of the chambers P1 and P2.

  A position correction actuator 47 is disposed on the side of the countermass / guide shaft 25 (left end surface side in FIG. 3). A position detection sensor 48 is built in the position correction actuator 47. The position correction actuator 47 is driven while detecting the position (movement amount) of the counter mass / guide shaft 25 by the position detection sensor 48, whereby the position of the counter mass / guide shaft 25 can be corrected. In place of the position correction actuator 47, a spring or the like can be used.

Next, how the stage drive unit shown in FIG. 3 is driven will be described.
As shown in FIG. 3A, when the slider 23 is moved to the right side in the drawing along the counter mass / guide shaft 25, the air is supplied to the right pressure chamber P1 in the slider 23, and from the left pressure chamber P2. Exhaust. Then, the internal pressure of the right pressure chamber P1 becomes higher than the internal pressure of the left pressure chamber P2, and the slider 23 slides along the counter mass / guide shaft 25 to the right in the drawing.

  At this time, gas pressure is applied to the pressure receiving plates 43 and 45 in the direction opposite to the sliding movement direction (right direction in the drawing) of the slider 23 (left direction in the drawing). Then, receiving this pressure, the pressure receiving plates 43 and 45 slide to the left while sliding on the inner surface of the slider 23. Then, together with the pressure receiving plates 43 and 45, the counter mass / guide shaft 25 moves toward the left while being supported by the guide support portion 27. The driving reaction force of the slider 23 is canceled by the movement of the counter mass / guide shaft 25 at this time. “Canceled” means that the force applied to the guide shaft 25 and the slider 23 is equal, and therefore the guide shaft 25 and the slider 23 have the same amount of momentum in opposite directions, and are members that support the stage when driving the stage. There is no power applied to.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3B, when the slider 23 is moved to the left in the drawing along the counter mass / guide shaft 25, the right pressure chamber P1 in the slider 23 is exhausted, contrary to the above. At the same time, the left pressure chamber P2 is supplied with air. Then, the internal pressure of the right pressure chamber P1 becomes lower than the internal pressure of the left pressure chamber P2, and the slider 23 slides along the counter mass / guide shaft 25 to the left in the drawing. In this case, contrary to the above, a gas pressure in the right direction is applied to the pressure receiving plates 43 and 45 in the slider 23, and the counter mass / guide shaft 25 moves in the right direction while being supported by the guide support portion 27. As described above, the stage reaction force is canceled by the movement of the counter mass / guide shaft 25.

  In such a drive state of the drive unit, the center of gravity SG of the slider 23 is displaced from the right side (FIG. 3A) to the left side (FIG. 3B), and the center of gravity GG of the guide shaft 25 is left side (FIG. 3A). )) To the right side (FIG. 3B), but the stage total center of gravity TG is not displaced. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the stage driving reaction force from being transmitted to the outside. When the amount of movement of the counter mass / guide shaft 25 is large or small when the reaction force is canceled, the position detection actuator 48 drives the position correction actuator 47 while detecting the position of the counter mass / guide shaft 25. . As a result, the position of the counter mass / guide shaft 25 is corrected.

  In the entire stage apparatus 1, for example, as shown in FIG. 2, when the stage body 10 is moved to the upper right in the figure, the X axis sliders 23A and 23B are moved to the right in the X direction along the X guide shafts 25A and 25B. The sliders 33A and 33B are moved upward in the Y direction along the Y guide shafts 35A and 35B. Here, as described above, the slider 23A / guide shaft 25A, slider 23B / guide shaft 25B, slider 33A / guide shaft 35A, slider 33B / guide shaft 35B are driven independently. Therefore, when the X axis sliders 23A and 23B move to the right in the X direction, the X guide shafts 25A and 25B move independently to the left in the X direction, and when the Y axis sliders 33A and 33B move upward in the Y direction, the Y guide shaft 35A. , 35B move independently downward in the Y direction.

  Then, the drive reaction force of each slider 23A, 23B, 33A, 33B is canceled by the movement of each guide shaft 25A, 25B, 35A, 35B. At this time, as described above with reference to FIG. 3, the total center of gravity TG of the stage main body 10 is not displaced, so that the stage driving reaction force can be prevented from being transmitted to the outside.

The stage driving unit can be configured as described below, for example, in addition to FIG.
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a drive unit of a stage apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention. (A) is a figure which shows the time of right movement, (B) is a figure which shows the time of left movement.
In the drive unit shown in FIG. 4, a hollow portion 25 'is formed in the counter mass / guide shaft 25 shown in FIG. 3, and a rectangular parallelepiped internal slider 24 is accommodated in the hollow portion 25'. A supply / exhaust system (not shown) is connected to the right chamber PP1 and the left chamber PP2 of the hollow portion 25 '. The internal slider 24 is guided in sliding contact with the inner surface of the hollow portion 25 ′ of the counter mass / guide shaft 25, and slides in the direction opposite to the sliding direction of the slider 23. Other configurations are substantially the same as those shown in FIG.

A state during driving of the stage driving unit shown in FIG. 4 will be described.
As shown in FIG. 4A, when the slider 23 is moved to the right side in the figure along the counter mass / guide shaft 25, the air is supplied to the right pressure chamber P1 in the slider 23, and from the left pressure chamber P2. Exhaust. Then, the internal pressure of the right pressure chamber P1 becomes higher than the internal pressure of the left pressure chamber P2, and the slider 23 slides along the counter mass / guide shaft 25 to the right in the drawing.

At this time, in the hollow portion 25 ′ of the countermass / guide shaft 25, air is supplied to the left chamber PP 2 and is exhausted from the right chamber PP 1, and the inside of the slider 23 moves in the direction opposite to the moving direction (left side in the figure). The slider 24 is moved. Such a movement of the internal slider 24 cancels the driving reaction force of the slider 23. However, at this time, the counter mass / guide shaft 25 itself hardly moves.
Since the countermass / guide shaft 25 is supported in a non-contact manner on the guide support portion 27 in the same manner as in FIG. 3, transmission of the remaining residual vibration is prevented.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 4B, when the slider 23 is moved to the left in the drawing along the counter mass / guide shaft 25, the exhaust is performed from the right pressure chamber P1 in the slider 23, contrary to the above. In addition, the left pressure chamber P2 is supplied with air. Then, the internal pressure of the right pressure chamber P1 becomes lower than the internal pressure of the left pressure chamber P2, and the slider 23 slides along the counter mass / guide shaft 25 to the left in the drawing. In this case as well, the countermass / guide shaft 25 itself hardly moves, but conversely, the air is supplied to the right chamber PP1 in the hollow portion 25 'of the countermass / guide shaft 25 and exhausted from the left chamber PP2. Then, the internal slider 24 is moved in the direction opposite to the moving direction of the slider 23 (right side in the figure). In the same manner as described above, the stage reaction force is canceled by the movement of the internal slider 24.

  4, the center of gravity GG of the guide shaft 25 is hardly displaced, and the center of gravity SG of the slider 23 is displaced from the right side (FIG. 4A) to the left side (FIG. 4B). The center of gravity SG of the internal slider 24 is displaced from the left side (FIG. 4A) to the right side (FIG. 4B). However, as in the example of FIG. 3, the stage total center of gravity TG is not displaced in this example. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the stage driving reaction force from being transmitted to the outside.

Next, a stage apparatus according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6.
FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a stage apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a plan view showing an example of movement of the stage device (upper right movement in the figure).
In the following description, the X direction and the Y direction refer to the arrow directions shown in FIGS. 5 and 6.
The stage apparatus 51 shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 is provided with a stage main body 10 composed of upper and lower stages 11 and 12 and the like, which are substantially the same as those of the first embodiment described above.

  The lower stage 12 of the stage body 10 is fitted to a Y guide shaft 65 extending in the Y axis direction via a gas bearing (not shown) or the like. At both ends of the Y guide shaft 65, X-axis sliders 53 (53A, 53B) that can slide in the X direction are provided. On the upper surface of each X-axis slider 53, guide support brackets 54 (54A, 54B) are formed. Both ends of the Y guide shaft 65 are fitted inside the guide support bracket 54 via gas bearings (not shown). The Y guide shaft 65 is slidable in the Y-axis direction while being supported by the guide support bracket 54. The Y guide shaft 65 also serves as a counter mass that cancels the driving reaction force of the lower stage 12. That is, the lower stage 12 corresponds to the slider 23 in FIG. 3 or 4, and the Y guide shaft 65 corresponds to the counter mass / guide shaft 25 in FIG. 3 or 4.

  Each X-axis slider 53 is slidably fitted to an X guide shaft 55 (55A, 55B) extending in the X-axis direction via a gas bearing (not shown). These X guide shafts 55 also serve as counter masses. That is, the X-axis slider 53 corresponds to the slider 23 in FIG. 3 or FIG. 4, and the X guide shaft 55 corresponds to the counter mass / guide shaft 25 in FIG. Guide support portions 57 are provided in the vicinity of both ends of each X guide shaft 55 via a gas bearing (not shown). The guide support portion 57 includes a pair of an outer support plate 57a and an inner support plate 57b that face each other in the Y-axis direction with the X guide shaft 55 interposed therebetween.

  Outside the guide support portion 57, the left and right (X-axis direction) end portions of the X guide shafts 55 are connected by connecting members 61 and 62. Accordingly, the X guide shafts 55A and 55B and the connecting members 61 and 62 are configured to have a frame shape as a whole (hereinafter referred to as a frame guide 70). The frame guide 70 is slidable in the X-axis direction while the X guide shaft 55 is supported in a non-contact manner by the guide support portion 57.

The operation of the stage device 51 of the second embodiment will be described.
As shown in FIG. 5, when the stage main body 10 is positioned approximately at the center of the frame guide 70, the stage total center of gravity TG is approximately at the center of the stage main body 10. When moving the stage main body 10 to the upper right in the figure from the state of FIG. 5, for example, as shown in FIG. 6, the X axis sliders 53A and 53B are moved to the right in the X direction along the X guide shafts 55A and 55B. The stage 12 is moved along the Y guide shaft 65 upward in the Y direction.

  When the X-axis sliders 53A and 53B move to the right in the X direction, the entire frame guide 70 moves to the left in the X direction while being supported by the guide support portion 57, and the driving reaction force of the X-axis sliders 53A and 53B is cancelled. On the other hand, when the lower stage 12 moves upward in the Y direction, the Y guide shaft 65 moves downward in the Y direction while being supported by the guide support bracket 54, and the driving reaction force of the lower stage 12 is cancelled.

  In this stage device 51, even if the Y guide shaft 65 moves in the X axis direction together with the X axis sliders 53A and 53B, and the upper stage 11 moves in the Y axis direction together with the lower stage 12, the center of gravity of the stage body 10 moves. However, the total center of gravity TG of the stage device 51 is not displaced between FIGS. Since each drive thrust distribution of the X guide shafts 55A and 55B is constant, even if the entire frame guide 70 is integrated, the functions of the X guide shafts 55A and 55B as the counter mass are the same as those described above (FIG. 3 or FIG. 4). It is. In this way, it is possible to prevent the stage driving reaction force from being transmitted to the outside.

It is a top view which shows the stage apparatus which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a top view which shows the example of a movement (upper right movement in a figure) of the same stage apparatus. It is sectional drawing which shows the drive part of the stage apparatus which concerns on one embodiment of this invention. (A) is a figure which shows the time of right movement, (B) is a figure which shows the time of left movement. It is sectional drawing which shows the drive part of the stage apparatus which concerns on other embodiment of this invention. (A) is a figure which shows the time of right movement, (B) is a figure which shows the time of left movement. It is a top view which shows the stage apparatus which concerns on the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a top view which shows the example of a movement (upper right movement in a figure) of the same stage apparatus. It is a figure which shows typically the electron beam exposure apparatus which concerns on one embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Stage apparatus 10 Stage main body 11 Upper stage 12 Lower stage 21 Y-axis movement guide 23 (23A, 23B) X-axis slider 24 Internal slider 25 (25A, 25B) X-guide shaft 25 'Hollow part 27 Guide support part 31 X-axis movement Guide 33 (33A, 33B) Y-axis slider 35 (35A, 35B) Y guide shaft 37 Guide support portion 40 Pressure chamber 43, 45 Pressure receiving plate 47 Position correction actuator 48 Position detection sensor 51 Stage device 53 (53A, 53B) X axis Slider 54 (54A, 54B) Guide support bracket 55 (55A, 55B) X guide shaft 57 Guide support portion 61, 62 Connecting member 65 Y guide shaft 70 Frame guide

Claims (8)

A stage device having a gas pressure actuated drive mechanism for moving and positioning the stage,
A guide shaft also serving as a counter mass, supported movably with respect to the base of the stage device;
A stage formed with a pressure chamber into which a working gas is introduced, which slides along the axial direction of the guide shaft;
A pressure receiving plate attached to the guide shaft that divides the pressure chamber;
Comprising
The stage is driven along the guide shaft by controlling the gas pressure in the pressure chamber divided by the pressure receiving plate, and the driving reaction force is driven in the direction opposite to the stage by the guide shaft serving also as the counter mass. A stage device that moves and cancels. A stage device that is driven by gas pressure and includes a guide driving mechanism for two axes for driving in the X-axis direction and driving in the Y-axis direction, and moves and positions the stage in a certain plane (XY plane),
Each guide drive mechanism
A guide shaft also serving as a counter mass, supported movably with respect to the base of the stage device;
A slider having a pressure chamber into which a working gas is introduced, which slides along the axial direction of the guide shaft;
A pressure receiving plate attached to the guide shaft that divides the pressure chamber;
Comprising
The slider is driven along the guide shaft by controlling the gas pressure in the pressure chamber divided by the pressure receiving plate, and the driving reaction force is driven in the direction opposite to the slider by the guide shaft serving also as the counter mass. A stage device that moves and cancels. The guide shaft consists of two parallel X guide shafts extending in the X axis direction and two parallel Y guide shafts extending in the Y axis direction,
The stage body of the stage is connected to an X slider that slides on each of the X guide shafts and the Y guide shafts, and a Y slider.
The stage apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the pressure chamber is formed inside the X slider and the Y slider. The guide shaft has two parallel guide shafts (first guide shafts) extending in the X-axis direction or the Y-axis direction, and one guide shaft extending in a direction perpendicular to the two guide axes. (Second guide shaft)
The opposite ends of the first guide shaft are connected by a connecting member, respectively.
A first slider that slides over each of the first guide shafts, and a second slider that slides over the second guide shafts,
The second guide shaft is arranged so as to span between the first sliders,
A stage body of the stage is coupled to the second slider;
3. The stage apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the pressure chamber is formed inside the first and second sliders. Position detecting means for detecting the position of the guide shaft;
Position correcting means for correcting the position of the guide shaft;
The stage apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:   6. The actuator according to claim 1, further comprising a limiting actuator that drives in a direction opposite to a driving direction of the stage in or near the guide shaft to limit movement of the guide shaft. The stage device according to the item. A hollow portion is formed in the guide shaft,
The stage apparatus according to claim 6, wherein an internal slider that moves in a direction opposite to a driving direction of the stage to cancel a driving reaction force of the stage is provided in the hollow portion. An exposure apparatus for transferring a pattern onto a sensitive substrate,
An exposure apparatus comprising the stage apparatus according to claim 1.

Images