JP2005345876A - Gas exchange apparatus, aligner and method for manufacturing electronic device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a gas exchange apparatus which can purge a pellicle-reticle space with a low absorbing gas in a short time and can decrease the concentration of a light absorbing substance in the space. <P>SOLUTION: A gas supply attachment 323 is disposed to connect an inner tube 324 to a gas supply port 521 of a pellicle frame 520, and a low absorbing gas is supplied to the pellicle-reticle space via the inner tube 324 and the gas supply port 521. During the process, an outer tube 325 is rendered into a reduced pressure state by exhausting so that the gas supply attachment 323, and the pellicle frame 520 are sucked by appropriate sucking force against the separating force between the gas supply attachment 323 and the pellicle frame 520 by the gas supply through the inner tube 324. In an evacuating attachment 326, an inner tube 327 is evacuated, while an outer tube 328 is pressurized by supplying the gas. Thereby, the gas in the pellicle-reticle space 540 is forcibly evacuated, in a state with the evacuating attachment 326 stuck tightly to the pellicle frame 520. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention is applied to a photolithography process in manufacturing electronic devices (hereinafter, collectively referred to as electronic devices) such as semiconductor devices, liquid crystal display devices, imaging devices such as CCDs, plasma display devices, and thin film magnetic heads. A gas replacement device that replaces a gas in a space between a mask substrate on which a pattern is formed, a protective member such as a pellicle and a frame member that attaches the protective member to the mask substrate with a predetermined gas, and a gas replacement device thereof The present invention relates to an exposure apparatus used and an electronic device manufacturing method using the exposure apparatus.

  Reduction projection exposure apparatus that projects a pattern image of a reticle by projection optical system on each projection (shot) area on a wafer coated with a photosensitive material (resist) when an electronic device is manufactured by a photolithography process (Hereinafter simply referred to as a projection exposure apparatus or an exposure apparatus). The circuit pattern in the electronic device is transferred onto the wafer by exposure by the projection exposure apparatus, and formed by post-processing.

In such an electronic device, there has been a demand for high-density integration of integrated circuits and miniaturization of circuit patterns. Therefore, projection light in a projection exposure apparatus tends to be gradually shortened in wavelength. As a light source for a projection exposure apparatus, a KrF excimer laser (wavelength 248 nm) has been mainly used in recent years in place of the mercury lamp which has been the mainstream so far, and an ArF excimer laser (wavelength 193 nm) having a shorter wavelength has recently been used. It has been. Development of an exposure apparatus using an F ₂ laser (wavelength 157 nm) is also progressing with the aim of further high density integration.

In general, ultraviolet light having a wavelength of about 190 nm or less is called vacuum ultraviolet light and does not pass through the air. This is because light is absorbed by substances such as oxygen molecules, water molecules, and carbon dioxide molecules (hereinafter referred to as light-absorbing substances) contained in the air. For this reason, in order to allow exposure light to reach the wafer surface with sufficient illuminance in an exposure apparatus using vacuum ultraviolet light, it is necessary to reduce or eliminate light-absorbing substances on the exposure optical path.
In order to solve such a problem, for example, a system has been proposed in which an optical path space between a light source and an object to be exposed is supplied with, for example, a gas with reduced light-absorbing material to reduce impurities including moisture (for example, , See Patent Document 1).
JP 2003-257820 A

However, for example, in the case of vacuum ultraviolet light of about 190 nm or less, in order to transfer a light-shielding pattern with a sufficient amount of light, it is necessary to exclude all light-absorbing substances including O ₂ and H ₂ O contained in the atmosphere. It is. Therefore, even in a minute space between a reticle and a pellicle having an optical path length of about 4 mm (hereinafter referred to as a pellicle-reticle space), if air remains in this space, about 10 ^−8. The exposure light is reduced to Therefore, it is necessary to keep the light-absorbing substance concentration in the space between the pellicle and the reticle low.

  In general, a frame member is provided between the reticle and the pellicle, and one air pressure adjusting vent hole is provided in the frame member. When the gas in the space between the pellicle and the reticle is replaced with a gas, the gas replacement can be performed by providing at least two air pressure adjusting vents. However, a particle filter for removing particles is installed in the vent hole, which serves as a resistance when supplying gas. For this reason, in order to supply a gas having a necessary flow rate to the space between the pellicle and the reticle, it is desirable that the gas supply pipe or the exhaust pipe is in close contact with the vent hole, that is, the frame member.

  However, when the gas supply pipe and the exhaust pipe are brought into close contact with each other, there is a possibility that a force is applied to the frame member and the frame member is deformed. When the frame member is deformed, the reticle is distorted, which affects the exposure accuracy.

  As described above, in the work of reducing the concentration of the light-absorbing substance in the space between the pellicle and the reticle, it is necessary to exchange the gas in the substantially sealed space in a short time and frequently, and in addition, the space partition wall material between the pellicle and the reticle. While it is necessary to make the supply and exhaust pipes closely contact each other, an excessive force should not be applied, and furthermore, a very complicated condition that the purge gas is desired to be closer to the atmospheric pressure is required, which is very difficult. It is.

The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and an object of the present invention is to replace the gas in the pellicle-reticle space with a predetermined gas without applying a load that deforms the frame member. It is an object of the present invention to provide a gas replacement device that can perform the above-described operation.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an exposure apparatus capable of appropriately performing exposure using short wavelength exposure light by appropriately performing such gas replacement.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide an electronic device manufacturing method capable of appropriately manufacturing an electronic device by using such an exposure apparatus.

  In order to achieve the above object, a gas replacement apparatus according to the present invention includes a mask substrate (510) on which a desired pattern (511) is formed, and a protection member (530) that protects the region on which the pattern is formed. A gas replacement device that replaces the gas in the space (540) formed by the frame member (520) supporting the protective member (530) and having at least two holes (521, 522) with a predetermined gas ( 322), the gas supply mechanism (331, 323) for supplying the predetermined gas into the space (540) through the one hole (521) of the at least two holes, and the one hole A connection member (333, 323) that generates a force against a force acting on the frame member (520) when the predetermined gas is supplied into the space (540) via (521). Obtain (see FIGS. 2 and 3) (claim 1).

  In addition, another gas replacement apparatus according to the present invention includes a mask substrate (510) on which a desired pattern (511) is formed, a protection member (530) that protects the region on which the pattern is formed, and the protection member. In the gas replacement device (322) for replacing the gas in the space (540) formed by the frame member (520) supporting the (530) and having at least two holes (521, 522) with a predetermined gas, Of the at least two holes, an exhaust mechanism (326, 333) for exhausting the gas from the space through the one hole (522), and the space (via the one hole (522)) 540) connecting members (331, 326) that generate a force against the force acting on the frame member (520) when the gas is exhausted from the inside (see FIGS. 2 and 3) ( Claim ).

  An exposure apparatus according to the present invention provides an exposure apparatus that transfers a pattern formed on a mask substrate to the substrate, the mask substrate, a protection member that protects a region where the pattern is formed, and the protection member. In order to replace the gas in the space formed by the frame member that is supported and has at least two holes with a predetermined gas, the gas replacement device according to the present invention described above is provided (claim 9). ).

  Moreover, the method for manufacturing an electronic device according to the present invention includes a step of transferring a pattern formed on the mask substrate onto the substrate using the exposure apparatus according to the present invention described above ( Claim 10).

  In this column, the reference numerals of the corresponding components shown in the attached drawings are shown for each component, but this is only for easy understanding and does not relate to the present invention. It is not intended to indicate that the means is limited to the embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

As described above, according to the present invention, a force that deforms the frame member does not act, and the high-purity gas can be purged in a short time in the space between the pellicle and the reticle. It is possible to provide a gas displacement device that can maintain the concentration of the light-absorbing substance in the inside sufficiently low.
In addition, by appropriately performing such gas replacement, it is possible to provide an exposure apparatus that can perform exposure appropriately using exposure light having a short wavelength.
In addition, by using such an exposure apparatus, it is possible to provide an electronic device manufacturing method that can appropriately manufacture an electronic device.

First Embodiment A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing the overall configuration of an exposure apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
The exposure apparatus 100 includes an exposure apparatus main body 200 that actually performs exposure processing, reticle storage, gas supply / exhaust to / from a space (protection space) surrounded by a pellicle, a frame member, and a protection member, which will be described later, and reticle management. A housing unit 400 that accommodates the reticle management unit 300 that performs the exposure, the exposure apparatus main body 200, and the reticle management unit 300, and provides a desired environment.
Hereinafter, the configuration of each unit will be described.

First, the exposure apparatus main body 200 will be described with reference to FIG.
The exposure apparatus main body 200 includes a light source 210, an illumination system 220, a reticle holding unit 230, a projection optical system 240, a wafer holding unit 250, an alignment system 260, and a control unit (not shown).

The light source 210 is disposed outside the chamber 410 and is connected to the illumination system 220 by a light transmission system 211 including a beam matching unit, generates illumination light IL, and enters the illumination system 220. In the present embodiment, the illumination light IL is described by taking vacuum ultraviolet light, particularly F ₂ laser light as an example, but is not limited to light of this wavelength. For example, far ultraviolet light such as KrF excimer laser light (wavelength 248 nm), vacuum ultraviolet light such as ArF excimer laser light (wavelength 193 nm), F ₂ laser light (wavelength 157 nm), or ultraviolet light from an ultra high pressure mercury lamp. Bright lines (g-line, i-line, etc.) may be used.

  The illumination system 220 includes a fly-eye lens as an optical integrator, a rod integrator (internal reflection type integrator), or the like as disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 10-112433 and 6-349701. An optical system, a relay lens, a variable ND filter, a reticle blind, and a dichroic mirror (all not shown). The illumination system 220 illuminates the slit-shaped illumination area defined by the reticle blind on the reticle 510 on which a circuit pattern or the like is drawn with a substantially uniform illuminance by the illumination light IL.

The reticle holding unit 230 includes a reticle stage 231, a reticle chamber 232, a reticle stage driving unit (not shown), a reticle laser interferometer system, and a reticle alignment system.
On reticle stage 231, reticle 500 having a reticle is conveyed by reticle conveying system 350 described later, and reticle 500 is held by vacuum suction. The reticle stage 231 can be finely driven in a plane perpendicular to the optical axis of the illumination system 220 for positioning the reticle 500 by a reticle stage driving unit made of, for example, a magnetic levitation type two-dimensional linear actuator, It can be driven at a scanning speed specified in the scanning direction. In this embodiment, since the magnetically levitated two-dimensional linear actuator includes an X drive coil and a Y drive coil in addition to a Z drive coil, the reticle stage 231 is moved in the Z-axis direction. Is also configured to be capable of minute driving.

The position of the reticle stage 231 in the stage moving surface is always detected with a resolution of about 0.5 to 1 nm, for example, by a reticle laser interferometer system using a moving mirror (not shown) provided on the reticle stage 231. The detected position information of the reticle stage 231 is input to the control unit of the exposure apparatus main body 200.
A reticle alignment system is arranged above the reticle 500. The reticle alignment system includes an epi-illumination system that illuminates an alignment mark formed on the reticle 500 with illumination light having the same wavelength as the illumination light IL, and an alignment microscope that captures an image of the mark.

Then, the position information of the reticle 500 detected thereby is input to the control unit of the exposure apparatus main body 200.
Based on the detected position information of the reticle 500 and the reticle stage 231, the control unit of the exposure apparatus main body 200 drives the two-dimensional linear actuator of the reticle holding unit 230 to control the position of the reticle stage 231. Reticle 500 is placed at a desired position.

Reticle chamber 232 is a sub-chamber isolated from the atmosphere in chamber 410 and accommodates reticle stage 231.
The connection portion of the reticle chamber 232 with the illumination system 220 and the connection portion with the projection optical system 240 are made of a glass material that transmits the illumination light IL.

The projection optical system 240 is, for example, a double-sided telecentric reduction system in which the projection magnification disposed below the reticle stage 230 is, for example, 1/4, 1/5, or 1/6.
In the present embodiment, as the projection optical system 240, a refractive system including only a plurality of, for example, about 10 to 20 refractive optical elements (lens elements) 241 is used.

  The projection optical system 240 irradiates the reticle 600 illuminated by the illumination system 220 onto the wafer 600 having a resist (photosensitive agent) coated on the surface thereof, and the circuit pattern of the reticle 510 in the illumination area on the wafer 600. Transfer the reduced image.

The wafer holding unit 250 is disposed below the projection optical system 240, holds the wafer 600 to be exposed, and controls its position (exposure position).
The wafer holding unit 250 includes a base plate 251, a wafer stage 252, a wafer holder 253, and a wafer laser interference system (not shown).
The wafer stage 252 is disposed on the base plate 251, and the wafer holder 253 is placed on the wafer stage 252. The wafer 600 is fixed on the wafer holder 253 by, for example, vacuum suction.
The wafer holder 253 can be tilted in an arbitrary direction with respect to a plane orthogonal to the optical axis of the projection optical system 240 by a drive unit (not shown), and can be finely moved in the optical axis AX direction of the projection optical system 240. Further, the wafer holder 253 can also perform a minute rotation around the optical axis AX.

  The wafer stage 252 moves not only in the scanning direction but also in a non-scanning direction orthogonal to the scanning direction so that a plurality of shot areas on the wafer 600 can be positioned in an exposure area conjugate with the illumination area. A step-and-scan operation that repeats an operation of scanning (scanning) exposing each shot area on the wafer and an operation of moving to an acceleration start position for exposure of the next shot area is performed. . The wafer stage 252 is driven two-dimensionally by a wafer stage driving unit including a linear motor, for example.

The position of the wafer stage 252 in the surface of the base plate 251 is always detected by a wafer laser interferometer system 218 through a movable mirror (not shown) provided on the upper surface of the wafer stage 252 with a resolution of, for example, about 0.5 to 1 nm. Is done. Based on the position information (or speed information), the position of the wafer stage 252 is controlled.
A reference mark plate is fixed near the wafer 600 on the wafer stage 252. The surface of the reference mark plate is set to the same height as the surface of the wafer 600. On this surface, a reference mark for so-called baseline measurement of an alignment system, which will be described later, a reference mark for reticle alignment, and other reference marks are provided. Is formed.

The alignment system 260 detects a mark on the wafer 600 via the optical system 261 provided on the side surface of the projection optical system 240 and controls the position of the wafer 600.
As the alignment system 260, in this embodiment, for example, an alignment sensor (Field Image Alignment (FIA) system) as disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2-54103 is used.

  The exposure apparatus main body 200 further supplies an imaging light beam for forming a plurality of slit images toward the best imaging plane of the projection optical system 240 from an oblique direction (not shown) that is oblique to the optical axis AX direction. An oblique incidence type multi-point focus detection system comprising a system and a light receiving optical system (not shown) that receives each reflected light beam of the imaging light beam on the surface of the wafer 600 through a slit, It is fixed to a supporting part (not shown) to be supported. As this multi-point focus detection system, one having the same configuration as that disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 5-190423 and 6-283403 is used, and the control unit detects the multi-point focus detection. Based on the wafer position information from the system, the wafer holder 253 is driven in the optical axis direction and the tilt direction of the plane perpendicular to the optical axis.

In the exposure apparatus main body 200 having such a configuration, the interior of each of the housing that houses the light transmission system 211, the housing that houses the illumination system 220, the reticle chamber 232, and the projection optical system 240 has low absorption. Replace with sex gas.
When light having a wavelength in the vacuum ultraviolet region is used as exposure light, a gas having a strong absorption characteristic with respect to light in such a wavelength band such as oxygen, water vapor, and hydrocarbon gas (hereinafter referred to as an absorptive gas) from the optical path. Need to be excluded. For this reason, the space corresponding to the optical path of the exposure light IL is set to a specific gas, such as nitrogen, helium, argon, etc., which has a characteristic that the absorption of light in the vacuum ultraviolet region is less than that of air by a gas displacement device (not shown). Noon gas such as neon, krypton, or a mixed gas thereof (these are collectively referred to as low-absorbing gas), and the internal pressure is set slightly higher than the external pressure. Thereby, the concentration of the absorbent gas in each space can be suppressed to about several ppm or less.

Further, the gas in the optical path space of the exposure light between the projection optical system 240 and the wafer 600 is also replaced with a low absorption gas.
For example, the space between the projection optical system 240 and the wafer 600 is surrounded by a housing (not shown) to form a wafer chamber, and the wafer chamber is replaced with a low-absorbing gas in the same manner as the reticle chamber 232 and the like. You just have to do it.
Alternatively, without replacing the wafer chamber, the gas may be locally replaced with the low absorption gas by, for example, jetting a low absorption gas into the optical path of the exposure light in this space.
Similarly, the optical path space of the exposure light between the illumination system 220 and the projection optical system 240 in which the reticle holding unit 230 is disposed is also locally made of a low absorption gas without providing a reticle chamber. You may make it replace.

Next, the reticle management unit 300 will be described with reference to FIGS.
The reticle management unit 300 includes a reticle library 310, a gas purge unit 320, and a reticle transport system 350.

The reticle library 310 accommodates a reticle 500 that is scheduled to be used for exposure processing in the exposure apparatus main body 200 or a reticle 500 that has already been used.
A reticle 500 housed in the reticle library 310, which is used for exposure processing in the exposure apparatus main body 200, is purged by a reticle transport system 350, which will be described later, in order to replace the protective space with a low-absorbing gas. It is conveyed to the section 320. For example, the reticle 500 that has been used in the exposure apparatus main body 200 is transported by the reticle transport system 350 and stored in the reticle library 310.

The inside of the reticle library 310 is gas-substituted with the low-absorbency gas as described above by a gas replacement device (not shown). Therefore, the reticle 500 in which a later-described protected space of the reticle 500 is already replaced with a low-absorbing gas can maintain the purity of the low-absorbing gas in the protective space to some extent.
An opening / closing door (not shown) of the reticle 500 of the reticle library 310 is provided with an opening / closing door that opens only when the reticle 500 is transported to and passed through the reticle transport system 350. In order to prevent outside air from being mixed inside when the open / close door is opened, it is preferable that a space blocking means such as an air curtain is provided in the open / close door portion.

The gas purge unit 320 forcibly replaces the protective space with a low-absorbing gas for the reticle 500 that is put into the exposure apparatus main body 200 and subjected to the exposure process.
The gas purge unit 320 includes a sub chamber 321 and a gas replacement device 322 disposed in the sub chamber 321.
When the reticle 500 immediately before being provided to the exposure apparatus main body 200 is introduced into the gas purge unit 320 by the reticle transport system 350, the protective space is gas-substituted by the low-absorbing gas by the gas replacement device 322. The reticle 500 that has undergone the gas replacement is transported to the exposure apparatus main body 200 by the reticle transport system 350. The reticle 500 conveyed to the exposure apparatus main body 200 is placed on the reticle stage 231 of the reticle holding unit 230.
The gas replacement method and the gas replacement device 322 according to the present invention will be described in detail later.

It is preferable that the inside of the sub-chamber 321 of the gas purge unit 320 is also gas-substituted with a low-absorbing gas, for example, as in the reticle library 310. In addition, it is desirable that a loading / unloading port of the reticle 500 (not shown) of the sub chamber 321 is provided with an opening / closing door and an air curtain that prevents outside air from being mixed inside when the opening / closing door is opened.
In addition, the gas purge unit 320 is desirably installed in the vicinity of the reticle holding unit 230 of the exposure apparatus main body 200.

  Further, the moisture concentration in the protection space 540 of the reticle 500 placed on the reticle stage 231 may increase during the exposure process. In such a case, it is preferable to purge the low-absorbency gas again into the protection space 540 of the reticle 500, for example, at the timing after the end of baking of one lot of semiconductors. In that case, the reticle transport system 350 transports the reticle 500 from the reticle holding unit 230 to the gas purge unit 320, and after the low-absorbing gas is purged into the protection space 540, transports the reticle 500 to the reticle holding unit 230 again.

The chamber 410 is an environmental chamber that houses the exposure apparatus main body 200 and the reticle management unit 300 and provides an environment and atmosphere suitable for exposure processing by the exposure apparatus main body 200.
An air conditioner (not shown) is disposed in the chamber 410, and the chamber 410 is maintained in a highly clean state in which an environment such as temperature is appropriately controlled and chemical contaminants are excluded. . In the present embodiment, the inside of the chamber 410 is controlled to an extremely clean atmosphere suitable for exposure processing by the exposure apparatus main body 200.
Further, the internal pressure of the chamber 410 is set to be higher than the atmospheric pressure of the environment in which the chamber 410 is installed, and external air is prevented from flowing into the chamber 410.
The overall configuration of the exposure apparatus 100 has been described above.

Next, the structure of a reticle (mask) 500 used in the exposure apparatus 100 will be described with reference to FIG.
2A is a cross-sectional view from the side of the reticle 500, and FIG. 2B is a plan view from above of the reticle 500. FIG. 2A is a cross-sectional view taken along a cutting plane AA ′ of the plan view shown in FIG.

As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the reticle 500 includes a reticle substrate (mask substrate) 510, a frame member 520, and a protection member 530.
One surface of the reticle substrate 510 includes a pattern region in which a pattern to be transferred to the wafer (substrate) 600 is formed, and one end of a frame member 520 is attached so as to surround the pattern region 511. The protection member 530 is attached to the other end of the frame member 520 so as to face the formation surface of the pattern region 511 of the reticle substrate 510. In the present embodiment, the pattern area 511 is formed in a rectangular area as shown in the figure, and therefore the frame member 520 is also arranged in a rectangle as shown in the figure.

With such a configuration, a space 540 surrounded by the reticle substrate 510, the frame member 520, and the protection member 530 is formed in the reticle 500.
The height of the frame member 520 is about 4 mm.
As the protective member 530, a pellicle film or a glass material such as fluorite or fluorine-doped quartz having a thickness of about 300 μm to 800 μm is used. In this embodiment, the protection member 530 is a pellicle film, and the frame member 520 and the protection member 530 are hereinafter referred to as a pellicle frame 520 and a pellicle 530. A space 540 surrounded by the reticle substrate 510, the pellicle frame 520, and the pellicle 530 is referred to as a protective space 540.

  The pellicle frame 520 is provided with two vent holes 521 and 522. The first vent hole 521 is formed at a substantially central portion of one side surface on the short side of the pellicle frame 520, and the second vent hole 522 is approximately the other side surface on the short side of the pellicle frame 520. Formed in the center. That is, the two vent holes 521 and 522 are provided in the pellicle frame 520 so as to face each other with the pattern region 511 sandwiched in the longitudinal direction.

In the present embodiment, as will be described in detail later, the first vent hole 521 serves as an air inlet for forcibly supplying the low-absorbency gas to the protective space 540, and the second vent hole 522 serves as the protective space. Used as an exhaust port for exhausting gas from 540.
The ventilation holes 521 and 522 are provided with dustproof filters 523 and 524 made of ceramic or organic matter. The dust filters 523 and 524 prevent dust (particles) from entering the protective space 540 through the vent holes 521 and 522.
The diameters of the air holes 521 and 522 are about 0.5 mm to 3.0 mm, respectively.

A control unit (not shown) of the exposure apparatus main body 200 is configured to include a microcomputer or a workstation, and controls each component of the exposure apparatus main body 200 in an integrated manner.
The reticle transport system 350 transports the reticle 500 having a reticle between the reticle holding unit 230, the reticle library 310, and the gas purge unit 320.
The reticle transport system 350 takes out the reticle 500 just before being used in the exposure apparatus main body 200 from the reticle library 310 and transports it to the gas purge unit 320 in order to purge the low-absorbent gas into the pellicle-reticle space 540.
In addition, the reticle 500 in which the low-absorbent gas is purged in the pellicle-reticle space 540 is transferred from the gas purge unit 320 to the reticle holding unit 230 of the exposure apparatus main body 200 and placed on the reticle stage 231 of the reticle holding unit 230. And subjected to an exposure process.

Next, a gas replacement method for the protection space 540 performed by the gas purge unit 320 and the gas replacement device 322 used therein for the reticle 500 having such a configuration will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of the gas replacement device 322 provided in the gas purge unit 320.
The gas replacement device 322 includes an air supply attachment 323, an exhaust attachment 326, an attachment drive system 329, an actuator control unit 330, an air supply pipe 331, an air supply part 332, an exhaust pipe 333, an exhaust part 334, and an overall control part 335. .

The air supply attachment 323 is an attachment that is in close contact with the periphery of the air supply port 521 of the pellicle frame 520 of the reticle 500 and forcibly supplies the low-absorbency gas into the protective space 540 from the air supply port 521.
FIG. 4A shows the configuration and use state of the air supply attachment 323.
As shown in FIG. 4A, the air supply attachment 323 has one inner tube 324 and two outer tubes 325 arranged on both sides of the inner tube 324.
The inner pipe 324 is connected to an air supply unit 332 shown in FIG. 3 through an air supply pipe 331 shown in FIG. Further, when the gas replacement in the protection space 540 is performed, the inner tube 324 is disposed so as to be connected to the air supply port 521 of the pellicle frame 520 as shown in FIG.

  Further, the outer pipe 325 is connected to an exhaust section 334 shown in FIG. 3 through an exhaust pipe 333 shown in FIG. In addition, when performing gas replacement of the protective space 540, as shown in FIG. 4A, the outer tube 325 has an opening at the end thereof in close contact with the pellicle frame 520 around the air supply port 521. Placed in. The outer tube 325 is in close contact with the pellicle frame 520 in such an arrangement that two outer tubes 325 and one inner tube 324 are aligned in the extending direction of the pellicle frame 520.

  The low absorptive gas is supplied from the inner pipe 324 to the air supply port 521 by operating the air supply unit 332 with respect to the air supply attachment 323 arranged in this manner with respect to the pellicle frame 520. The Further, a separation force acts between the tip opening of the air supply attachment 323 and the pellicle frame 520. Further, when the exhaust unit 334 operates, the outer tube 325 is sucked under reduced pressure, and the tip opening of the air supply attachment 323 and the pellicle frame 520 are sucked and brought into close contact with each other. As a result, the air supply attachment 323 and the pellicle frame 520 are adsorbed with an appropriate force such that the pellicle frame 520 is not deformed.

  It should be noted that the end portions of the inner tube 324 and the outer tube 325, that is, the portions that come into contact with the pellicle frame 520 are preferably formed by forming a highly flexible material such as a fluororesin in an O-ring shape. By adopting such a configuration, the degree of sealing between the inner tube 324 and the outer tube 325 and the pellicle frame 520 is further increased, and the purge gas flows out to the outside of the pellicle frame or the vacuum suction force is weakened. Etc. can be avoided.

The exhaust attachment 326 is an attachment that is in close contact with the periphery of the exhaust port 522 of the pellicle frame 520 of the reticle 500 and forcibly exhausts the gas in the protective space 540 from the exhaust port 522.
FIG. 4B shows the configuration and use state of the exhaust attachment 326.
As shown in FIG. 4B, the exhaust attachment 326 has one inner tube 327 and two outer tubes 328 arranged on both sides of the inner tube 327.

The inner pipe 327 is connected to the exhaust part 334 shown in FIG. 3 via the exhaust pipe 333 shown in FIG. Further, when the gas replacement in the protection space 540 is performed, the inner tube 327 is disposed so as to be connected to the exhaust port 522 of the pellicle frame 520 as shown in FIG.
In the exhaust attachment 326, the diameter of the inner tube 327 is formed slightly larger than the diameter of the exhaust port 522.

Further, the outer pipe 328 is connected to an air supply unit 332 shown in FIG. 3 through an air supply pipe 331 shown in FIG. In addition, when performing gas replacement of the protective space 540, as shown in FIG. 4B, the outer tube 328 is arranged so that the opening at the end thereof is in close contact with the pellicle frame 520 around the exhaust port 522. Be placed. The outer tube 328 is in close contact with the pellicle frame 520 in such an arrangement that two outer tubes 328 and one inner tube 327 are aligned in the extending direction of the pellicle frame 520.
By operating the exhaust unit 334 with respect to the exhaust attachment 326 arranged in this manner with respect to the pellicle frame 520, the gas in the protective space 540 is forcibly exhausted via the inner tube 327 and the exhaust port 522. The In addition, as a result, the tip opening of the exhaust attachment 326 and the pellicle frame 520 are sucked and brought into close contact with each other.

  Further, when the air supply unit 332 is operated, the outer tube 328 is pressurized, and a separation force that opposes the above-described suction force acts between the distal end opening of the exhaust attachment 326 and the pellicle frame 520. To do. As a result, the exhaust attachment 326 and the pellicle frame 520 are adsorbed with an appropriate force such that the pellicle frame 520 is not deformed. In particular, in the exhaust attachment 326 according to the present embodiment, the diameter of the inner tube 327 is made larger than the diameter of the exhaust port 522 of the pellicle frame 520. Therefore, the deformation of the pellicle frame 520 is also suppressed in this respect. Is done.

Note that it is preferable that the end portions of the inner tube 327 and the outer tube 328, that is, portions that come into contact with the pellicle frame 520, be formed by forming a highly flexible material such as a fluororesin in an O-ring shape. By adopting such a configuration, the degree of sealing between the inner tube 327 and the outer tube 328 and the pellicle frame 520 is further increased, and the applied gas is prevented from leaking to the outside or the reduced pressure suction force being weakened. be able to.
The method of this embodiment in which the attachment 323 and the exhaust attachment 326 and the pellicle frame 520 are brought into close contact (chucking) with the reduced pressure suction force of the gas is referred to as “vacuum chuck method”.

  The attachment drive system 329 is a mechanism that moves the supply attachment 323 and the exhaust attachment 326 to the positions of the supply port 521 and the exhaust port 522 of the reticle 500 and aligns them with high accuracy. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the attachment drive system 329 is configured by combining a guide bar 337 and an actuator 336. is set up.

The actuator control unit 330 is a control unit that independently controls and drives the actuators 336 provided in the attachment drive system 329.
In such a configuration, each of the actuators 336 of the attachment drive system 329 is driven by the actuator control unit 330, so that the supply attachment 323 and the exhaust attachment 326 can each be arbitrarily positioned around the mounting position 338 of the reticle 500. It can be moved to any position in any direction.

When the attachment is moved, its position is measured and controlled by a position measuring device (not shown). By performing such control, the position of the air supply attachment 323 and the exhaust attachment 326 is controlled with an accuracy of, for example, 10 to 50 μm. Further, by controlling with such high accuracy, the air supply attachment 323 and the exhaust attachment 326 can be disposed closer to the pellicle frame 520, and the force applied to the pellicle frame 520 can be reduced. In addition, the work efficiency is also improved, which is preferable.
When the reticle 500 is placed at a predetermined position 338, the air supply attachment 323 and the exhaust attachment 326 are supplied to the air supply port 521 and the exhaust port 522 of the reticle 500 by the actuator controller 330 and the attachment drive system 329. Moved to the position.

  The control unit 335 moves the supply attachment 323 and the exhaust attachment 326 to desired positions at a desired timing, and the supply force and the exhaust suction force act on these attachments at a desired magnitude at a desired timing. In other words, the actuator control unit 330, the air supply unit 332, and the exhaust unit 334 are controlled so that gas replacement in the protection space 540 can be performed appropriately and efficiently.

  Further, in order to prevent particles from entering the inside of the supply attachment 323 and the exhaust attachment 326 itself, it is preferable that a high-purity purge gas always flows through the end opening of the attachment.

The operation of the gas replacement device 322 having such a configuration will be described together.
For example, when the reticle 500 is placed at a predetermined position 338 in the gas purge unit 320 by the reticle transport system 350, the operation of the actuator control unit 330 and the attachment drive system 329 is performed, for example, as shown in FIG. 323 is moved to the position of the air supply port 521 of the reticle 500, and the exhaust attachment 326 is moved to the position of the exhaust port 522 of the reticle 500. At this time, alignment is performed with high accuracy so that the inner tube 324 of the supply attachment 323 is connected to the supply port 521 and the anode 327 of the exhaust attachment 326 is connected to the exhaust port 522.

When the air supply attachment 323 and the exhaust attachment 326 are set, the air supply unit 332 and the exhaust unit 334 are operated.
As a result, in the air supply attachment 323, high-purity low-absorbency gas is supplied to the inner pipe 324 via the air supply pipe 331, the inside of the inner pipe 324 is pressurized, and the air supply attachment 323 and the pellicle frame are supplied. A force in a direction away from each other acts between 520 and 520. Further, the exhaust suction force from the exhaust part 334 is propagated to the outer tube 325 via the exhaust tube 333, and the reduced pressure suction force acts on the pellicle frame 520 from the outer tube 325. As a result, the separation action and the suction action are combined, and the air supply attachment 323 is brought into close contact with the pellicle frame 520 with an appropriate pressing force such that the pellicle frame 520 is not deformed.
On the other hand, the low absorptive gas supplied through the inner pipe 324 is forced to flow into the protection space 540 of the reticle 500 from the air supply port 521 connected to the inner pipe 324.

On the other hand, in the exhaust attachment 326, high-purity low-absorbency gas is supplied to the outer pipe 328 via the air supply pipe 331, the inside of the outer pipe 328 is pressurized, and the exhaust attachment 6 and the pellicle frame 520 are connected. In the meantime, forces in directions away from each other act. Further, the exhaust suction force from the exhaust unit 334 is propagated to the inner tube 327 via the exhaust tube 333, and the reduced pressure suction force acts on the pellicle frame 520 from the inner tube 327. As a result, the separation action and the suction action are combined, and the exhaust attachment 326 is brought into close contact with the pellicle frame 520 with an appropriate pressing force such that the pellicle frame 520 is not deformed.
On the other hand, the gas in the protective space 540 of the reticle 500 is forcibly exhausted through the exhaust port 522 by the reduced pressure suction action applied to the inner tube 324.

The forced gas exhaust amount from the exhaust port 522 is controlled to be substantially equal to the forced gas supply amount from the air supply port 521.
Note that the purge gas flow rate to be supplied may be reduced, and the same amount of gas may be naturally discharged from the exhaust port.
When supplying the purge gas into the protective space 540, the displacement of the pellicle may be monitored using a displacement meter or the like to control the flow rate of the high purity purge gas. By taking such a configuration, damage to the pellicle can be prevented.

  Further, the pressures of the inner pipes 324 and 327 and the outer pipes 325 and 328 in the air supply attachment 323 and the exhaust attachment 326 may be determined in consideration of the installation area on each pellicle frame and the conductance of the filter. For example, in the air supply attachment 323, when the conductance of the filter 523 is low (resistance is large), the high-purity purge gas supplied to the inner tube 324 cannot be allowed to flow into the protective space 540 unless pressurized. However, when the pressure is applied, the force acting on the pellicle frame 520 at the air supply port 521 increases, and the pellicle frame 520 is easily deformed. In this case, the product of the area of the outer tube 325 acting on the pellicle frame 520 (the area of the opening) and the pressure acting thereon can be determined so that the force generated by the pressurization of the inner tube 324 can be offset. That's fine.

  That is, the suction force and separation force between the attachment and the pellicle frame 520 resulting from the action of the inner and outer pipes of the air supply attachment 323 and the exhaust attachment 326 in this way are the air supply portion 332 and the exhaust portion 334. By adjusting the amount of air supply and exhaust in the cylinder, or by changing the area of the end opening acting on the pellicle frame 520 of each pipe of each attachment, it can be adjusted to have an appropriate size. it can.

Further, in the exhaust attachment 326, since the inner tube 327 is connected to the exhaust port 522 provided with the filter 523, the degree of decompression in the inner tube 327 becomes low. If the outer tube 328 is pressurized in such a state, the pressure may be prevailed, and the pellicle frame 520 may be distorted. The outer tube 328 is preferably pressurized at a certain low pressure in consideration of such a state. In some cases, no pressure may be applied to the outer tube 328 of the exhaust attachment 326. In such a case, an exhaust attachment that does not include the outer tube 328 may be used. Further, it is conceivable to take a measure such that the inner tube 327 suctions a part of the pellicle frame 520 by making the surface where the inner tube 327 is in close contact with the pellicle frame 520 wider than the exhaust port 522.
The pressure balance in the air supply attachment 323 may be dealt with in a similar manner.

As described above, in the gas replacement device 322 of the present embodiment, the high-absorption low-absorption gas is supplied from the air supply port 521 and the gas in the protective space 540 is exhausted from the exhaust port 522 in the protective space 540. Thus, the gas in the protective space 540 is replaced with a low-absorbing gas. In particular, the gas supply port 521 that is a gas inflow port and the gas discharge port 522 that is a gas exhaust port are disposed on both end faces of the protective space 540 across the longitudinal direction, so that the gas in the protective space 540 Can be appropriately and efficiently replaced with low-absorbency gas from corner to corner.
In addition, a material having high flexibility such as a fluororesin is disposed in the inner tube of each of the air supply attachment 323 and the outer tube 325 and the end opening of the outer tube. Therefore, the degree of sealing of each pipe in the attachment is further increased, and pressurization and decompression by gas supply or suction can be efficiently applied.

Thus, according to the method of the present embodiment, gas replacement in the protection space can be completed in a short time with a simple configuration. Moreover, workability is not reduced even by frequent gas replacement.
Note that the pressure control by gas is a process generally having a high response speed, and gas replacement can be performed without reducing the semiconductor manufacturing speed.

  In the present embodiment, the air supply attachment 323 and the exhaust attachment 326 are arranged in a line in the extending direction of the pellicle frame. With such a configuration, even when the pellicle frame 520 is very low, for example, about 4 mm, the outer tube can be arranged in a rotationally symmetric structure around the inner tube. As a result, the force applied to the pellicle frame 520 can be made uniform.

  The supply attachment 323 and the exhaust attachment 326 basically have a structure having three holes and pipes, and for example, three pipes or the like can be substituted. That is, a very simple structure can be obtained and the cost is not increased.

In the present embodiment, one supply port 521 and one exhaust port 522 are provided for reticle 500, but the number of openings is not limited to this. A plurality of supply ports and exhaust ports may be provided.
Further, the number of the air supply ports 521 and the number of the exhaust ports 522 may be different.
Further, the air supply port 521 and the exhaust port 522 are not limited to those formed in the pellicle frame 520. For example, it may be formed on the reticle substrate 510, the pellicle 530, or the like. Further, even the pellicle frame 520 may be formed on the long side.

Second Embodiment A second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 3 and FIGS.
In the first embodiment described above, the air supply port 521 and the exhaust port 522 are installed at positions facing each other of the pellicle frame 520 of the reticle 500, and the gas in the protective space 540 is discharged using two attachments. Replaced. However, the gas can be similarly replaced by one attachment. Such a method will be described as a second embodiment of the present invention.
Here, only the points different from the first embodiment will be described, and the description of the same configuration, operation, operation and the like as the first embodiment will be omitted. Specifically, this embodiment differs from the first embodiment in a part of the configuration of the gas replacement device, a part of the configuration of the reticle, and a gas replacement method related thereto. Moreover, the same code | symbol is used about the same structure.

FIG. 6 is a view showing a configuration of a reticle 500b according to the second embodiment, FIG. 6A is a sectional view from the side of the reticle 500b, and FIG. 6B is a view of the reticle 500b. It is a top view from above. Note that the cross-sectional view of FIG. 6A is a cross-sectional view taken along a cutting plane BB ′ of the plan view shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 6, in reticle 500 b according to the present embodiment, exhaust port 522 b is arranged in the vicinity of air supply port 521. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 6B, two exhaust ports 522b are provided in the vicinity of both sides of the air supply port 521 in the extending direction of the pellicle frame 520b. As in the first embodiment, the air supply port 521 is provided with a filter 523, and the exhaust port 522b is provided with a filter 524b.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the arrangement of the two exhaust ports 522b and the air supply ports 521 is such that when the attachment 323b is brought into close contact with the pellicle frame 520b, the inner tube 324b of the attachment 323b and the two outer tubes 325b on both sides thereof. Are arranged so as to be connected to the air supply port 521 and the two exhaust ports 522b, respectively. That is, the air supply port 521 and the exhaust port 522b are arranged so that the inner tube 324b of the attachment 323b is connected to the air supply port 521, and the two outer tubes 325b of the attachment 323b are connected to the two exhaust ports 522b. In the present embodiment, the attachment 323b has the same shape as the air supply attachment 323 of the first embodiment.

  The gas replacement device according to the second embodiment is the same as the gas replacement device 322 of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 3 except for the configuration related to the exhaust attachment 326 and only the configuration for the supply attachment 323. It is the structure which left. That is, the gas replacement device of the present embodiment only needs to have a configuration for supplying and exhausting gas to one attachment 323b, and the gas replacement device of the first embodiment is used as it is. Can do.

  As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the attachment 323 b is moved to the air supply port 521 portion of the reticle 500 and the inner tube 324 b is connected to the air supply port of the pellicle frame 520 when performing gas replacement of the protection space 540. The outer tube 325 b is connected to the exhaust port 522 b of the pellicle frame 520.

Then, by operating the air supply unit 332 and the exhaust unit 334 of the gas replacement device 322, the inner pipe 324b is supplied with a high-purity low-absorbency gas and pressurized, and the outer pipe 325b has a reduced pressure suction force. Works. The first pressure is applied to the inner tube 324b acting as a separation force between the attachment 323b and the pellicle frame 520b, and the pressure is reduced to the outer tube 325b acting as an adsorption force between the attachment 323b and the pellicle frame 520b. The attachment 323b is closely adjusted to the pellicle frame 520 in a state where each tube and each opening of the pellicle frame 520 are connected.
Accordingly, a part of the gas supplied to the inner pipe 324b is supplied to the protection space 540 through the filter 523. Further, the gas in the protective space 540 is exhausted from the exhaust port 522b.
As a result, the gas in the protective space 540 is replaced with a high-purity low-absorbency gas.

In order to cancel the force applied to the pellicle frame 520b by this structure, as described above, the diameters of the inner tube 324b and the outer tube 325b, and the applied pressure and reduced pressure suction force are set to the first value. Adjustments may be made in the same manner as in the embodiment.
Further, the exhaust pipes are installed at both ends of the air supply pipe, so that a moment is not generated in the pellicle frame 520b due to pressurization of the air supply pipe and decompression of the exhaust pipe. However, if the pressure difference between the pressurization and pressure reduction is small, the moment can be ignored. Therefore, only one of the exhaust pipes 522b can be used.

Third Embodiment A third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 9 to 11.
In both the first embodiment and the second embodiment described above, a so-called vacuum chuck system in which the pellicle frame and the attachment are brought into close contact with each other by using a reduced pressure suction force by a gas exhausting action (vacuum suction action). Was used. However, it is also possible to attach the attachment to the pellicle frame by a mechanical method. Such a method will be described as a third embodiment of the present invention.
Here, only the points different from the first embodiment will be described here, and the description of the same configuration, operation, operation, and the like as those of the first embodiment will be omitted. The same components are described using the same reference numerals.

FIG. 9 is a view showing a configuration of a reticle 500c according to the third embodiment, FIG. 9A is a cross-sectional view from the side of the reticle 500c, and FIG. 9B is a view of the reticle 500c. It is a top view from above. Note that the cross-sectional view of FIG. 9A is a cross-sectional view taken along a section CC ′ in the plan view of FIG. 9B.
As shown in FIG. 9, in the reticle 500c of the present embodiment, a hook portion 525 having a recess structure for hooking a latch portion of an attachment to be described later is provided in the immediate vicinity of the air supply port 521 and the exhaust port 522. 526.
The other configuration of the reticle 500c is the same as that of the reticle 500 shown in the first embodiment.

On the other hand, the gas replacement apparatus of the third embodiment has an air supply attachment 323c as shown in FIG. 10 and an exhaust attachment 326c (FIG. 3) having substantially the same configuration as the air supply attachment 323c. .
The air supply attachment 323c includes an inner tube 324c, a latch 339, and a latch operation unit 340.
The inner pipe 324c is connected to an air supply unit 332 shown in FIG. 3 through an air supply pipe 331 shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 10, the inner pipe 324c is supplied with a high-purity low-absorbency gas from the air supply portion 332 while being in close contact with the air supply port 521, and this is forced into the protective space 540 through the vent hole 521. It is aired.

  As shown in FIG. 10, it is optional whether or not the inner tube 324c is in close contact with the air inlet 521 in a state where the air supply attachment 323c is attached to the pellicle frame 520c. In order to facilitate the operation of attaching the air supply attachment 323c to the pellicle frame 520c by engaging the latch 339 with the key portion 525, the increase in the gas supply resistance to the protective space 540 is within an allowable range. The inner pipe 324c and the air supply port 521 may be arranged so as to have a slight gap on the condition.

The tip of the latch 339 is mechanically driven by the latch operation unit 340, and is operated, for example, in an open state or in a closed state as shown in FIG. The air supply attachment 323c is moved to the vicinity of the pellicle frame 520c, and the leading end of the latch 339 is hooked on the hook 525 of the pellicle frame 520c as shown in FIG. It is attached to 520c.
Although not shown, the latch operation unit 340 has a drive source and a power transmission mechanism, and is configured as a part of the attachment drive system 329 of the gas replacement device as shown in FIG.

  In addition, the gas replacement device of the third embodiment has an exhaust attachment 326c (FIG. 3) having the same configuration as the supply attachment 323c. However, the exhaust force of the exhaust part 334 shown in FIG. 3 acts on the inner pipe of the exhaust attachment 326c, and the gas in the protective space 540 is exhausted through the inner pipe.

  In the third embodiment, an air supply pipe 331 from an air supply unit 332 for supplying gas is provided for the attachment 323c, and an exhaust unit for exhausting gas for the exhaust attachment. An exhaust pipe 333 from 334 is provided. Further, as described above, the attachment driving system 329 is provided with the latch operation unit 340 for operating the latch 339 of each attachment 323c and 326c.

In the gas replacement apparatus having such a configuration, as shown in FIG. 11, the supply attachment 323c is brought close to the pellicle frame 520c by the mechanical mechanism of the attachment drive system 329, as in the first embodiment. .
Next, the front end portion of the latch 339 is opened by operating the latch operation portion 340, and the latch 339 is hooked on the hook portion 525. As a result, the air supply attachment 323c is fixed to the pellicle frame 520c.
By the same processing, the exhaust attachment 326c is also fixed to the pellicle frame 520c.

In this state, the high purity purge gas is pressurized to the inner pipe 324c of the intake attachment 323c, thereby supplying the gas into the protection space 540.
At the same time, the inner tube of the exhaust attachment 326c is decompressed, and the gas in the protective space 540 is exhausted.

As described above, in the third embodiment, the pellicle frame 520c, the air supply attachment 323c, and the exhaust attachment 326c are attached by the latch 339 and the hook portion 525, and thus the first and second embodiments. Similarly to the above, the deformation of the pellicle frame 520c can be reduced.
In addition, the intake attachment 323c and the exhaust attachment 326c are configured by a single pipe (one pipe) and a latch 339. Compared to the configuration having a plurality of pipes, the attachment portion, the air supply pipe 331, The configuration of piping parts such as the exhaust pipe 333 (FIG. 3) can be simplified.

Device Manufacturing Method Next, a device manufacturing method using the exposure apparatus 100 described above in a lithography process will be described.
FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a manufacturing process of an electronic device such as a semiconductor chip such as an IC or LSI, a liquid crystal panel, a CCD, a thin film magnetic head, or a micromachine.
As shown in FIG. 12, in the manufacturing process of the electronic device, first, the function / performance design of the device such as the circuit design of the electronic device is performed, and the pattern design for realizing the function is performed (step S810). Then, a mask on which the designed circuit pattern is formed is manufactured (step S820).
On the other hand, a wafer (silicon substrate) is manufactured using a material such as silicon (step S830).

Next, an actual circuit or the like is formed on the wafer by lithography or the like using the mask manufactured in step S820 and the wafer manufactured in step S830 (step S840).
Specifically, first, a thin film with an insulating film, an electrode wiring film, or a semiconductor film is formed on the wafer surface (step S841), and then the entire surface of the thin film is exposed using a resist coating apparatus (coater). An agent (resist) is applied (step S842).
Next, the resist-coated substrate is loaded on the wafer holder of the above-described exposure apparatus according to the present invention, and the mask manufactured in step S830 is loaded on the reticle stage, and the pattern formed on the mask is formed. The reduced transfer is performed on the wafer (step S843). At this time, in the exposure apparatus, each shot area of the wafer is sequentially aligned by the alignment method according to the present invention described above, and a mask pattern is sequentially transferred to each shot area.

When the exposure is completed, the wafer is unloaded from the wafer holder and developed using a developing device (developer) (step S844). As a result, a resist image of the mask pattern is formed on the wafer surface.
Then, the wafer subjected to the development process is etched using an etching apparatus (step S845), and the resist remaining on the wafer surface is removed using, for example, a plasma ashing apparatus (step S846).
Thereby, patterns such as an insulating layer and electrode wiring are formed in each shot region of the wafer. Then, an actual circuit or the like is formed on the wafer by sequentially repeating this process while changing the mask.

If a circuit or the like is formed on the wafer, then assembling as a device is performed (step S850). Specifically, the wafer is diced and divided into individual chips, each chip is mounted on a lead frame or a package, bonding for connecting electrodes is performed, and a packaging process such as resin sealing is performed.
Then, inspections such as an operation confirmation test and a durability test of the manufactured device are performed (step S860), and the device is shipped as a completed device.

  In addition, this Embodiment was described in order to make an understanding of this invention easy, and does not limit this invention at all. Each element disclosed in the present embodiment includes all design changes and equivalents belonging to the technical scope of the present invention, and various suitable modifications are possible.

  For example, in the embodiment described above, in the gas purge unit 320 provided in a sub-chamber different from the reticle library 310 and the reticle holding unit 230, the reticle protection space (pellicle-reticle space) is replaced with a low absorption gas. did. However, it is effective to perform this gas replacement immediately before mounting on the reticle stage 231 at a location closer to the reticle stage 231. Further, another space separated from the space where the reticle stage 231 is installed is provided inside the reticle holding unit 230, and a gas replacement device 322 is installed therein to fill the protective space 540 with gas. It may be.

In addition, the configuration of the exposure apparatus 100 is not limited to that in FIG. 1 and may be arbitrarily changed. For example, the alignment method, the configuration of the alignment system, the configuration of the illumination system 220, the configuration of the reticle holding unit 230, the configuration of the projection optical system 240, the configuration of the wafer holding unit 250, etc. apply any methods and configurations other than those described above. You can do it.
The present invention is not limited to a step-and-scan type exposure apparatus, but to various types of exposure apparatuses including a step-and-repeat type or proximity type exposure apparatus (such as an X-ray exposure apparatus). Can be applied in exactly the same way.
The exposure illumination light (energy beam) used in the exposure apparatus is not limited to ultraviolet light, and may be charged particle beams such as X-rays (including EUV light), electron beams and ion beams. Moreover, the exposure apparatus used for manufacture of a DNA chip, a mask or a reticle may be used.

FIG. 1 is a view schematically showing a configuration of an exposure apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of the reticle according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a view schematically showing the configuration of the gas replacement device of the gas purge unit of the exposure apparatus shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an attachment for air supply and an attachment for exhaust according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and a state in which these attachments are attached to a pellicle. FIG. 5 is a view for explaining a state in which the air supply attachment according to the first embodiment of the present invention is attached to the reticle. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a configuration of a reticle according to the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an attachment according to the second embodiment of the present invention and a mounting state of the attachment to the pellicle. FIG. 8 is a view for explaining a state in which the attachment according to the second embodiment of the present invention is mounted on the reticle. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a configuration of a reticle according to the third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an attachment for air supply according to the third embodiment of the present invention and a mounting state of the attachment to the pellicle. FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining a state in which an air supply attachment according to the third embodiment of the present invention is mounted on a reticle. FIG. 12 is a flowchart for explaining a device manufacturing method according to the present invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Exposure apparatus 200 ... Exposure apparatus main body 210 ... Light source
211 ... Light transmission system 220 ... Illumination system 230 ... Reticle holding part
231 ... Reticle stage
232 ... Reticle chamber 240 ... Projection optical system
241 ... Lens element 250 ... Wafer holder
251 ... Base plate
252 ... Wafer stage
253 ... Wafer holder 260 ... Alignment system
261 ... Optical system 300 ... Reticle management unit 310 ... Reticle library 320 ... Gas purge unit
321 ... Subchamber
322 ... Gas displacement device
323 ... Attachment for air supply
326 ... Attachment for exhaust
324, 327 ... Inner pipe
325, 328 ... outer pipe
339 ... Latch
340 ... Latch operation section
329 ... Attachment drive system
330 ... Actuator control unit
331 ... Supply pipe
332 ... Air supply section
333 ... exhaust pipe
334 ... exhaust part
335 ... Overall control unit
336 ... Actuator
337 ... Guide bar
338... Reticle placement position 350... Reticle transfer system 400... Housing 410. Chamber 500. Reticle provided with a pellicle. 510 Reticle 511. Pattern 520.
521 ... Air supply port
522 ... Exhaust port
523, 524 ... Filter
525 ... Pelli key 530 ... Pellicle 540 ... Protective space (pellicle-reticle space)
600 ... wafer

Claims (10)

Gas in a space formed by a mask substrate on which a desired pattern is formed, a protection member that protects the region on which the pattern is formed, and a frame member that supports the protection member and has at least two holes In a gas replacement device that replaces a gas with a predetermined gas,
A gas supply mechanism for supplying the predetermined gas into the space through the one of the at least two holes;
And a connecting member that generates a force that resists a force acting on the frame member when the predetermined gas is supplied into the space through the one hole. The force acting on the frame member is a force for separating the gas supply mechanism and the frame member generated by supplying the predetermined gas,
The gas replacement device according to claim 1, wherein the connection member generates a force for sucking the gas supply mechanism and the frame member. The gas supply mechanism has a gas supply port connected to the one hole,
The gas replacement device according to claim 1, wherein the connection member has a suction port facing the periphery of the one term.   The gas replacement device according to claim 3, wherein the gas supply port and the suction port are provided in one attachment member. Gas in a space formed by a mask substrate on which a desired pattern is formed, a protection member that protects the region on which the pattern is formed, and a frame member that supports the protection member and has at least two holes In a gas replacement device that replaces a gas with a predetermined gas,
An exhaust mechanism for exhausting the gas from the space through the one of the at least two holes;
And a connecting member that generates a force against the force acting on the frame member when the gas is exhausted from the space through the one hole. The force acting on the frame member is a force for sucking the exhaust mechanism and the frame member generated by exhausting the gas,
The gas replacement device according to claim 5, wherein the connection member generates a force that separates the exhaust mechanism and the frame member. The exhaust mechanism has an exhaust port connected to the one hole,
The gas replacement device according to claim 5, wherein the connection member has a supply port that faces the periphery of the one term and supplies the predetermined gas.   The gas replacement device according to claim 7, wherein the exhaust port and the supply port are provided in one attachment member. In an exposure apparatus for transferring a pattern formed on a mask substrate to the substrate,
A gas in a space formed by the mask substrate, a protective member that protects the region where the pattern is formed, and a frame member that supports the protective member and has at least two holes is replaced with a predetermined gas. Therefore, an exposure apparatus comprising the gas replacement device according to any one of claims 1 to 8.   10. A method for manufacturing an electronic device, comprising: transferring a pattern formed on the mask substrate onto the substrate using the exposure apparatus according to claim 9.

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