JP4702313B2 - Stage equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a stage device that moves a plate on which a workpiece is placed at least in the XY directions, and is used in, for example, an exposure apparatus and an inspection device, and moves a plate on which a workpiece is placed in an XY direction orthogonal to the plate surface. The present invention relates to a stage device.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a stage device called a surface motor stage device or a soya motor stage device disclosed in Patent Document 1 is known as a stage device that can be moved with a small force even when a substrate (workpiece) to be placed is increased in size and weight. ing. A surface motor stage device (soya motor stage device) is a method in which a moving body is levitated by air on a flat platen provided with ferromagnetic convex poles in a grid pattern, and a magnetic force is applied to the moving body. The moving body is configured to move by changing the magnetic force between the moving body and the convex pole of the platen.

The inventor previously proposed an XYθ moving stage in Japanese Patent Application No. 2006-34071 that moves a plate on which a workpiece is placed in the XYθ directions based on the principle of the surface motor stage device (soya motor stage device).
FIG. 11 is a sectional view showing a configuration of an exposure apparatus to which the XYθ moving stage according to the invention of the above application is applied, and FIG. 12 is a plan view of the XYθ moving stage. 11 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG.
In these drawings, 1 is a stage base constituting a base plate or base frame on which an XYθ moving stage is mounted, 2 is a thrust generating means fixed on the stage base 1, and 3 is a reference support member fixed to the stage base 1. 4 is an auxiliary support member fixed to the stage base 1, 5 is a flat stage comprising a flat plate 6, a honeycomb core 7, and a platen 8, and 6 is a flat plate for placing and holding a work 9 to be exposed on the surface, 7 Is provided on the back surface side of the flat plate 6 (the side opposite to the side on which the workpiece 9 is held). The honeycomb core is provided to maintain rigidity even if the flat plate 6 is thin and light. The platen is provided on the back side of the substrate and is divided into a plurality of pieces and is provided with a gap 81 therebetween through the honeycomb core 7, 9 is a workpiece, and 10 is a projection. A lens.

  As shown in these drawings, the thrust generating means 2 is used to move the plane plate 6, the X and Y direction moving magnetic fields orthogonal to the plane of the platen 8, and the coordinate axes orthogonal to the plane of the platen 8. Is provided with a magnetic pole for generating a moving magnetic field in the direction of the θ rotation axis. Further, as shown in FIG. 12, the thrust generating means 2 includes one X-direction thrust generating means 21 in which the direction of the moving magnetic field is arranged in the direction along the X axis, and the direction of the moving magnetic field in the direction along the Y axis. Two Y-direction thrust generating means 22 are provided. If the magnetic field of the X-direction thrust generating means 21 is moved without moving the magnetic field of the Y-direction thrust generating means 22, the flat plate 6 moves in the X direction. If the magnetic fields of the two Y-direction thrust generating means 22 are moved in the same direction synchronously without moving the magnetic field of the X-direction thrust generating means 21, the flat plate 6 moves in the Y direction. If the magnetic field of the two Y-direction thrust generating means 22 is moved in the opposite direction without moving the magnetic field of the X-direction thrust generating means 21, the flat plate 6 rotates and moves in the θ rotation axis direction.

  A plurality of reference support members 3 are provided to support the flat plate 6, and the flat plate 6 is always under the flat plate 6 and can support the flat plate 6 no matter where the flat plate 6 moves within the moving range. Placed in position. Since the region where exposure is performed is within the region surrounded by the reference support member 3, the region where exposure is performed does not tilt or shake, and exposure processing can be performed in a stable state. Further, one or more auxiliary support members 4 are provided in a range wider than the area occupied by the plane plate 6 in order to support the plane plate 6, and are distributed over the entire area where the plane plate 6 moves. The Thereby, no matter where the flat plate 6 moves within the moving range, the flat plate 6 is always supported by the auxiliary support member 4 in addition to the reference support member 3, and even if an uneven load is applied to the flat plate 6, The flat plate 6 does not tilt or shake, and the exposure process can be performed in a stable state.

  Air is ejected from the surfaces of the thrust generating means 2, the reference support member 3, and the auxiliary support member 4 facing the flat stage 5, and the flat plate 6 is floated by air pressure. The surface of the flat plate 6 is processed with high precision, a vacuum suction groove (not shown) for holding the workpiece 9 is formed, and a vacuum pipe is connected. The surface of the platen 8 has convex grids formed in a grid pattern, the space between the convex poles and the convex poles is filled with resin, and then surface grinding is performed. The platen 8 is divided into a plurality of portions and the gap 81 is provided because the flat plate 6 is made of aluminum which is easy to machine, whereas the platen 8 is made of pure iron and has a different coefficient of thermal expansion. The difference in thermal expansion is absorbed by the gap 81 to prevent the flat plate 6 from being deformed such as warpage.

  FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing an example of a specific configuration of the thrust generating means 2, and the thrust generating means 2 is attached to the stage base 1 so as to have a degree of freedom in the height (vertical) direction. 23 and a magnetic pole 24 that is mounted on the leaf spring 23 and generates a moving magnetic field in a uniaxial direction. Further, an air ejection hole 25 is provided on the surface of the magnetic pole 24, and air for floating the flat plate 6 is supplied.

  FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a specific configuration of the reference support member 3. The reference support member 3 includes an air pad 32 having an air ejection hole 31 and a pedestal 33 that is fixed to the stage base 1 and supports the air pad 32. And a spherical bearing 34 that supports the air pad 32 with respect to the pedestal 33. The air pad 32 includes an air ejection hole 31 through which air is ejected from a porous surface or an orifice, and is configured to be freely swingable by a spherical bearing 34.

  FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a specific configuration of the auxiliary support member 4. The auxiliary support member 4 includes an air pad 42 having an air ejection hole 41, an intermediate base 43 that supports the air pad 42, and an intermediate base 43. The shaft 44 extends into the air cylinder 45, the air cylinder 45 fixed to the stage base 1 and supporting the intermediate base 43, and the spherical bearing 46 that supports the air pad 42 with respect to the intermediate base 43. The auxiliary support member 4 can adjust the air pad 42 to an arbitrary height by changing the pressure of the air supplied by the air cylinder 45 to move the shaft 44 up and down with an arbitrary thrust.

  Next, the operation of the XYθ moving stage will be described with reference to FIGS. First, the height of the reference support member 3 is set. After the setting, air is supplied to the air cylinder 45 of the auxiliary support member 4 to raise the shaft 44. The pressure of the air supplied to the air cylinder 45 of the auxiliary support member 4 is a pressure at which a thrust that eliminates the self-weight deflection of the planar stage 5 is obtained. The thrust for eliminating the self-weight deflection of the planar stage 5 is obtained in advance from the size and weight of the planar stage 5 and the number of reference support members 3 and auxiliary support members 4. Next, the flat stage 5 is placed on the air pad 32 of the reference support member 3 and the air pad 42 of the auxiliary support member 4. In the thrust generating means 2, the parallel leaf spring 23 that supports the thrust generating means 2 is extended by its own magnetic force and is attracted to the platen 8 provided on the back surface of the flat plate 6. When air is supplied to the air pad 32 of the reference support member 3, the air pad 42 of the auxiliary support member 4 and the thrust generating means 2, and the air is ejected from the surface, the plane stage 5 is moved to the air pads 32 and 42 and the thrust generating means 2. To surface. In order to perform the exposure process, the workpiece 9 is placed on the flat plate 6. By moving the magnetic fields of the X direction thrust generating means 21 and the Y direction thrust generating means 22, the plane stage 5 moves in the XY plane, and exposure light is irradiated from a light irradiation unit (not shown) through a mask. Then, exposure is performed by moving the work 9 divided into a plurality of exposure areas in order of the divided areas by step-and-repeat. After the exposure of all areas is completed, the work 9 is unloaded from the flat plate 6.

Next, the principle of movement of the XYθ moving stage will be described with reference to FIG. This figure is a cross-sectional view showing the relationship between the platen 8 provided on the flat stage 5 and the magnetic pole 24 provided on the thrust generating means 2.
A moving magnetic field is generated by applying a current from a drive circuit (not shown) to the coils 27a and 27b wound around the magnetic poles 24a to 24d in the following procedure, and the platen 8 moves in the left direction with respect to the magnetic pole 24. .
First, in FIG. 16A, a current is passed through the coil 27a on the magnetic poles 24a, 24b side in a direction to increase the magnetic force of the magnetic pole 24a. On the other hand, no current flows through the coil 27b on the magnetic poles 24c, 24d side. As a result, since the magnetic force of the magnetic pole 24a is strengthened, the magnetic pole 24a attracts strongly to the convex pole 8a of the platen 8, and the magnetic pole 24a and the convex pole 8a are in the opposite positions. Since the magnetic pole 24b faces the nonmagnetic material 83 between the convex pole 8b and the convex pole 8c of the platen 8, no magnetic force is generated. The magnetic pole 24c and the magnetic pole 24d are attracted to the convex pole 8d and the convex pole 8f, respectively, which are oblique.
Next, in FIG. 16B, the current of the coil 27a on the magnetic poles 24a, 24b side is stopped, and a current is passed through the coil 27b on the magnetic poles 24c, 24d side so as to increase the magnetic force of the magnetic pole 24d. As a result, the magnetic pole 24d and the convex pole 8f attract strongly. Since the magnetic pole 24c faces the nonmagnetic material 83 between the convex pole 8d and the convex pole 8e of the platen 8, it does not attract the convex pole 8d. Accordingly, the platen 8 moves to the left in the figure with respect to the thrust generating means 2 so that the magnetic pole 24d faces the convex pole 8f. The magnetic pole 24a and the magnetic pole 24b attract the convex pole 8a and the convex pole 8c in the oblique direction, respectively.
Next, in FIG. 16C, the current of the coil 27b on the magnetic poles 24c, 24d side is stopped, and a current is passed through the coil 27a on the magnetic poles 24a, 24b side so as to increase the magnetic force of the magnetic pole 24b. As a result, the magnetic pole 24b and the convex pole 8c attract strongly. Since the magnetic pole 24a faces the nonmagnetic material 83 between the convex pole 8a and the convex pole 8b of the platen 8, it does not attract the convex pole 8a. Accordingly, the platen 8 moves to the left in the figure with respect to the thrust generating means 2 so that the magnetic pole 24b faces the convex pole 8c. The magnetic pole 24c and the magnetic pole 24d attract the convex pole 8e and the convex pole 8f in the oblique direction, respectively.
Next, in FIG. 16D, the current of the coil 27a on the magnetic poles 24a, 24b side is stopped, and a current is passed through the coil 27b on the magnetic poles 24c, 24d side so as to increase the magnetic force of the magnetic pole 24c. As a result, the magnetic pole 24c and the convex pole 8e attract strongly. Since the magnetic pole 24d faces the nonmagnetic material 83 between the convex pole 8f and the convex pole 8g of the platen 8, it does not attract the convex pole 8f. Therefore, the platen 8 moves to the left in the figure with respect to the thrust generating means 2 so that the magnetic pole 24c faces the convex pole 8e. The magnetic pole 24a and the magnetic pole 24b are attracted to the convex pole 8b and the convex pole 8c in the oblique direction, respectively.
In addition, after moving to the position of FIG.16 (d), the platen 8, ie, the plane stage 5, can be hold | maintained at the position of FIG.16 (d) by continuing sending an electric current through the coil 27b.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-23689

  In the XYθ moving stage shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, when the substrate (work) placed on the flat plate 6 becomes large and the moving range of the flat plate 6 becomes large, only three thrust generating means 2 are arranged. If not, as shown in FIG. 17, when the flat plate 6 moves to the end of its moving range, the three thrust generating means 2 are positioned at the end of the flat plate 6. In such a positional relationship, the force point becomes the corner of the flat plate 6 (the lower left of the flat plate 6 in FIG. 17) in order to move the flat plate 6, so that a slight movement near the force point of the flat plate 6 is a diagonal line. On the other side (upper right of the flat plate 6 in FIG. 17), it appears as a large movement, so that it is difficult to control the movement of the flat plate 6 minutely. Further, since a large moment is generated when the flat plate 6 is moved, the thrust generating means 2 requires a very large force to brake the flat stage 5, and it is more difficult to control the fine movement of the flat plate 6. Become.

  In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a stage apparatus that moves a plate that is air-floated with respect to a stage base in a non-contact manner by a thrust generated by a thrust generating means fixed to the stage base. It is an object of the present invention to provide a stage device that can easily perform minute movement control of a plate regardless of the position of the movement range of the plate. Another object of the present invention is to provide a stage apparatus having a function of carrying in and out a workpiece processed by the stage apparatus main body.

The present invention employs the following means in order to solve the above problems.
A first means is a stage apparatus that moves a plate holding a workpiece in XY directions orthogonal to each other on a plate surface. The stage base is fixed to the stage base, and a plurality of magnetic poles that eject air and generate a moving magnetic field are provided. Thrust generating means, a flat platen having a grid-like convex pole formed on the surface facing the thrust generating means, driven by the thrust generating means, and the plate with respect to the stage base A stage comprising: a plate position detecting unit for detecting a position; and a control unit for selecting a thrust generating unit to be operated among the plurality of thrust generating units based on a plate position signal from the plate position detecting unit. Device.
The second means is a stage apparatus that moves a plate holding a workpiece in XY directions perpendicular to the plate surface, and a workpiece that processes the workpiece held on the plate and partitioned on the stage base. A plate loading / unloading unit that is disposed adjacent to the processing unit and the workpiece processing unit and carries a plate holding an unprocessed workpiece to the workpiece processing unit or unloads a plate holding a processed workpiece from the workpiece processing unit; A workpiece loading / unloading mechanism for loading an unprocessed workpiece on the plate of the plate loading / unloading portion from the outside of the apparatus or unloading a processed workpiece on the plate of the plate loading / unloading portion to the outside of the apparatus; It is fixed to the stage base provided in the plate carry-in / conveying section, and generates a moving magnetic field by ejecting air. A plurality of thrust generating means having poles, a plate platen having a grid-like convex pole formed on a surface facing the thrust generating means and driven by the thrust generating means; A plate position detecting means for detecting a position with respect to the stage base; and a controller for selecting a thrust generating means to be operated among the plurality of thrust generating means based on a plate position signal from the plate position detecting means. This is a featured stage device.
A third means is the stage according to the second means, wherein a plurality of sets each including the plate loading / unloading section and a workpiece loading / unloading mechanism for loading / unloading the workpiece to / from the plate loading / unloading section are provided. Device.
The fourth means is any one of the first means to the third means, wherein the plurality of thrust generating means are thrust generating means for generating thrust in the X direction and thrust for generating thrust in the Y direction. The stage device is characterized in that the generating means are arranged side by side and at least three of the thrust generating means under the plate operate regardless of the movement position of the plate.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, even if the plate moves to the end of the moving range, the position of the thrust generating means that operates can be relatively centered with respect to the plate. Movement control becomes easy.
According to the invention of the second aspect, it is possible to easily carry in and out the workpiece processed by the stage apparatus main body, and the thrust generating means that operates even when the plate moves to the end of the moving range. Since the position can be relatively central to the plate, minute movement control of the plate is facilitated.
According to the third aspect of the present invention, it is possible to quickly process a workpiece processed by the stage apparatus main body by alternately operating a plurality of sets of plate loading / unloading units and workpiece loading / unloading mechanisms.
In the invention according to claim 4, regardless of the size of the plate, the plate can be moved by operating at least three of the thrust generating means below the plate.

A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In each of the following embodiments, a stage apparatus that can move in the XYθ direction will be described as an example, but the present invention can also be applied to a stage apparatus that can move in the XY direction.
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration of a stage apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a plan view of the stage apparatus. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG.
In these drawings, 21-1 to 21-4 are X-direction thrust generating means, 22-1 to 22-5 are Y-direction thrust generating means, 11 is an X-direction laser interferometer, 12 is a Y-direction laser interferometer, 13 Is a control unit, and 14 is a work processing unit for processing the work 9 formed on the stage base 1. Other configurations correspond to the configurations of the same reference numerals shown in FIG. The specific configurations of the X-direction thrust generating means 21-1 to 21-4, the Y-direction thrust generating means 22-1 to 22-5, the reference support member 3, and the auxiliary support member 4 shown in FIGS. Since these are the same as those described with reference to FIGS. Further, the principle of movement of the XYθ moving stage is the same as that described with reference to FIG. Further, in FIG. 2, the thrust generating means 21 and 22 located below the flat plate 6 are shown so as to be visible although not actually visible. Further, all of the four dotted lines shown in the work processing unit 14 are virtual lines and do not actually exist.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, three reference support members 3 and a plurality of auxiliary support members 4 are provided on the stage base 1, and a plane plate 6 is supported thereon by air levitation. The three reference support members on the stage base 1 are always located under the plane plate 6 where they can support the plane plate 6 wherever the plane plate 6 moves within the movement range. On the stage base 1, there are a plurality of thrust generating means 2 for generating a thrust for moving the flat plate 6, for example, nine thrust generating means (X-direction thrust generating means 21-1 to 21- in FIG. 2). 4, Y direction thrust generating means 22-1 to 22-5) are provided. The thrust generating means is disposed so that the magnetic poles of adjacent thrust generating means are arranged in a direction perpendicular to each other. That is, X-direction thrust generating means 21-1 to 21-4 for moving the flat plate 6 in the X direction and Y-direction thrust generating means 22-1 to 22-5 for moving in the Y direction are arranged alternately. . The flat plate 6 moves within a predetermined range on the stage base 1 by the thrusts from the X direction thrust generating means 21-1 to 21-4 and the Y direction thrust generating means 22-1 to 22-5.

  Further, in the above stage apparatus, an X direction laser interferometer 11 and a Y direction laser interferometer 12 for detecting the position of the flat plate 6 are provided on the stage base 1. The X-direction laser interferometer 11 detects the X-direction movement distance of the flat plate 6, and the Y-direction laser interferometer 12 detects the Y-direction movement distance of the flat stage 5. That is, the X-direction laser interferometer detects the moving distance from the origin position of the flat plate 6 by the 11 and Y-direction laser interferometer 12 and outputs the detection signal to the control unit 13. The control unit 13 calculates the position coordinates of the flat plate 6 based on the detection signal. The control unit 13 previously determines which of the plurality of X-direction thrust generating means 21-1 to 21-4 and Y-direction thrust generating means 22-1 to 22-5 is generated with respect to the position coordinates of the flat plate 6. Information on how to operate the means is stored. The control unit 13 selects and operates the thrust generating means to be operated based on this information.

Next, the operation of the stage apparatus will be described with reference to FIGS. These drawings show the workpiece processing unit 14, the flat plate 6, and nine thrust generating means (X direction thrust generating means 21-1 to 21-4, Y direction thrust generating means 22-1 to 2) of the stage apparatus shown in FIG. It is the figure which showed the relationship of 22-5).
First, in FIG. 3A, when the plane plate 6 is located at the lower left of the workpiece processing unit 14, the position coordinates of the plane plate 6 are set to (0, 0) (for convenience, the position of the lower left corner of the plane plate 6 is set). Position coordinates (0, 0)). Similarly, in FIG. 3B, the position coordinates of the flat plate 6 when it is located in the lower right of the work processing unit 14 of the flat plate 6 is (2, 0). Similarly, in FIG. The position coordinate of the flat plate 6 when it is at the upper left of the work processing unit 14 of the flat plate 6 is (0, 2). Similarly, in FIG. 4D, it is at the upper right of the work processing unit 14 of the flat plate 6. The position coordinates of the plane plate 6 at that time are (2, 2). Accordingly, the flat plate 6 moves in the range of the position coordinates (0, 0) to (2, 2). Therefore, the movement range of the plane plate 6 is divided corresponding to the position coordinates (0, 0) to (2, 2), and is operated corresponding to the divided position coordinates (0, 0) to (2, 2). The thrust generation means is selected from the X-direction thrust generation means 21-1 to 21-4 and the Y-direction thrust generation means 22-1 to 22-5, and the information is stored in the control unit 13.

  As shown in FIG. 4 (e), the control unit 13 determines that the position coordinates of the plane plate 6 are (0, 0) to (1, 1), that is, (0 ≦ X <1, 0 ≦ Y <1). In this range, the four thrust generating means (X-direction thrust generating means 21-1, 21-3, Y-direction thrust generating means 22-2, 22 which are surely below the flat plate 6 within this moving range. -3) is operated to move the flat plate 6. Since these four thrust generating means are the X direction thrust generating means 21-1, 21-3 and the Y direction thrust generating means 22-2, 22-3, the plane plate 6 is moved in any direction in the XYθ direction. Can do.

  Similarly, as shown in FIG. 4 (f), the control unit 13 determines that the position coordinates of the plane plate 6 are (1, 0) to (2, 1), that is, (1 ≦ X <2, 0 ≦ Y If it is within the range <1), four thrust generating means (X direction thrust generating means 21-3, 21-4, Y direction thrust generating means 22-3, The plane plate 6 is moved by operating 22-5). Further, as shown in FIG. 5G, the control unit 13 determines that the position coordinates of the plane plate 6 are (0, 1) to (1, 2), that is, (0 ≦ X <1, 1 ≦ Y < 2), the four thrust generating means (X direction thrust generating means 21-1, 21-2, Y direction thrust generating means 22-1 and 22 below the flat plate 6 within this moving range). -3) is operated to move the flat plate 6. Further, as shown in FIG. 5 (h), the control unit 13 determines that the position coordinates of the plane plate 6 are (1, 1) to (2, 2), that is, (1 ≦ X <2, 1 ≦ Y < In the range of 2), the four thrust generating means (X direction thrust generating means 21-2, 21-4, Y direction thrust generating means 22-3, 22 below the flat plate 6 within the moving range). -4) is operated to move the flat plate 6.

  As described above, in this stage apparatus, as long as the flat plate 6 is within its moving range, the four thrust generating means are always located below the flat plate 6 at any position (coordinates). Has been. That is, the movement of the flat plate 6 is performed by two X-direction thrust generating means and two Y-direction thrust generating means. However, in order to move the flat plate 6 in the XYθ direction, as described in the previous application (Japanese Patent Application No. 2006-34071), there are three thrust generating means (two X direction thrust generating means and two Y direction thrust generating means). 1 means, or 1 X direction thrust generating means and 2 Y direction thrust generating means) can be moved in the X direction, Y direction and θ direction. Therefore, the thrust generating means may be arranged so that at least three thrust generating means are below the flat plate 6 within the moving range of the flat plate 6. For example, in FIGS. 4E to 5H, the Y-direction thrust generating means 22-3 may be removed from the four thrust generating means.

A second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
6 to 10 are plan views for explaining the configuration and operation of the stage apparatus according to the invention of this embodiment.
In these drawings, 6-1 is a first plane plate, 6-2 is a second plane plate, 9-1 and 9-2 are workpieces, and 14 is held on a plate 6 defined on the stage base 1. The workpiece processing units 15 and 16 for processing the workpiece 9 are partitioned on the stage base 1 and are arranged adjacent to the workpiece processing unit 14 and hold the unprocessed workpiece 9 in the workpiece processing unit 14. The first plate loading / unloading section and the second plate loading / unloading section 17 and 18 for unloading the plate 6 holding the processed workpiece 9 from the workpiece processing section 14 or the plate loading / unloading sections 15 and 16, respectively. A first workpiece is loaded onto the plate 6 to carry an untreated workpiece 9 from outside the apparatus or to carry out the treated workpiece 9 on the plate 6 of the plate loading / unloading sections 15 and 16 to the outside of the apparatus. Out mechanism and the second workpiece loading and unloading mechanism 19 is handler, 21-1～21-14 the X-direction thrust generating means, 22-1～22-13 is Y-direction thrust generating means.

  The specific configurations of the X-direction thrust generating means 21-1 to 21-14 and the Y-direction thrust generating means 22-1 to 22-13 are the same as those shown in FIG. Further, although a plurality of reference support members and auxiliary support members are omitted and not shown in the drawings, their specific configurations are the same as those described in FIGS. Further, the principle of movement of the XYθ moving stage is the same as that described with reference to FIG. Further, the X-direction laser interferometer and the Y-direction laser interferometer for detecting the position of the plane plate 6 are not shown in the figure, but the movement distance from the origin position of the plane plate 6 is determined by these laser interferometers. The control unit to which the detected signal is input is also omitted and not shown, but the description is omitted because it is the same as that described in FIG. Further, in FIGS. 6 to 10, in order to make the operation of the flat plate 6 easy to understand, the thrust generating means 21 and 22 located under the flat plate 6 are shown to be visible although not actually visible. In addition, all of the dotted dotted lines shown in the workpiece processing unit 14, the first plate loading / unloading unit 15, and the second plate loading / unloading unit 16 are virtual lines and do not actually exist. Further, the stage apparatus shown in FIGS. 6 to 10 has a configuration when applied to an exposure apparatus, and a workpiece exposure process is performed in the workpiece processing unit 14, but this stage apparatus is limited to application to the exposure apparatus. For example, the present invention can also be applied to an inspection apparatus.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 to 10, the stage apparatus according to the invention of the present embodiment is adjacent to the work processing unit 14 similar to the work processing unit 14 illustrated in FIG. 2 and is not processed by the work processing unit 14. Two plate loading / unloading units 15 and 16 are provided for loading the plate 6 holding the workpiece 9 or unloading the plate 6 holding the processed workpiece 9 from the workpiece processing unit 14. Moreover, as shown in FIGS. 6-10, the 2nd 1st plane plate 6-1 and the 2nd plane plate 6-2 which mount and move the workpiece | work 9 are provided. For example, when one flat plate 6-1 is moving to perform processing, the other flat plate 6-2 stands by in the second plate loading / unloading unit 16 and the processed workpiece 9-1 It is comprised so that replacement | exchange of the workpiece | work 9-2 before a process can be performed rapidly.

  A first workpiece loading / unloading mechanism 17 and a second workpiece loading / unloading mechanism 18 each having a handler 19 are attached to the first plate loading / unloading portion 15 and the second plate loading / unloading portion 16, respectively. For example, the first workpiece loading / unloading mechanism 17 holds the workpiece 9-1 before processing by the handler 19 and loads the workpiece 9-1 into the first plate loading / unloading unit 15 so that the processed workpiece 9-1 is processed. It is carried out of the apparatus from the plate carry-in / carry-out unit 15. The thrust generating means 21 and 22 are arranged on the stage base 1 with 27 adjacent magnetic poles extending from the workpiece processing unit 14 to the first plate loading / unloading portion 15 and the second plate loading / unloading portion 16 on both sides thereof. X-direction thrust generating means 21-1 to 21-14 and Y-direction thrust generating means 22-1 to 22-13 whose directions are orthogonal to each other are fixed to the stage base 1, and two plane plates 6-1; 6-2 can move between the first plate loading / unloading unit 15 and the workpiece processing unit 14 and between the second plate loading / unloading unit 16 and the workpiece processing unit 14.

Next, the operation of this stage apparatus will be described with reference to FIGS.
First, as shown in FIG. 6A, the first flat plate 6-1 is waiting at the first plate loading / unloading unit 15. The first flat plate 6-2 stands by at the second plate loading / unloading unit 16. The work 9-1 is carried into the stage device by the handler 19 of the first work carry-in / carry-out mechanism 17, and is placed on the first flat plate 6-1 waiting in the first plate carry-in / carry-out unit 15. The Here, the movement control of the first flat plate 6-1 is performed by the X-direction thrust generating means 21-4, 21-9 and the Y-direction thrust generating means 22-5, 22-9. The flat plate 6-2 is performed by X-direction thrust generating means 21-1, 21-5 and Y-direction thrust generating means 22-1 and 22-6.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 7B, the first flat plate 6-1 moves from the first plate loading / unloading section 15 to the work processing section 14 as shown by the arrow, and the exposure process is started. Is done. Note that the area where the workpiece processing is performed is indicated by hatching. When moving from the first plate loading / unloading section 15 to the work processing section 14, X-direction thrust is generated from the X-direction thrust generating means 21-1, 21-5 and Y-direction thrust generating means 22-1, 22-6. Means 21-4, 21-8, Y direction thrust generating means 22-4, 22-9, then X direction thrust generating means 21-3, 21-8, Y direction thrust generating means 22-4, 22-8, Subsequently, switching is performed in the order of X-direction thrust generating means 21-3, 21-7 and Y-direction thrust generating means 22-3, 22-8.

  While the workpiece 9-1 is being processed in the workpiece processing unit 14, the second workpiece loading / unloading mechanism 18 loads the workpiece 9-2 into the stage apparatus by the handler 9, and the second plate loading / unloading is performed. Place it on the second flat plate 6-2 waiting in the section 6-2.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 7 (c), FIG. 8 (d), FIG. 8 (e), FIG. 8 (f), FIG. 9 (g), FIG. 9 (h), FIG. The one flat plate 6-1 is sequentially moved by the thrust generating means 21 and 22, and the entire area of the work 9-1 placed on the first flat plate 6-1 is exposed. The movement during this time is shown in FIG. 7 (c) as X direction thrust generating means 21-2, 21-7, Y direction thrust generating means 22-3, 22-7, and as shown in FIG. 8 (d), X direction thrust generating means 21. −7, 21-10, Y direction thrust generating means 22-7, 22-10, in FIG. 8E, X direction thrust generating means 21-7, 21-11, Y direction thrust generating means 22-8, 22−. 10, X direction thrust generating means 21-11, 21-12, Y direction thrust generating means 22-10, 22-12 in FIG. 8 (f), X direction thrust generating means 21-10, 21 in FIG. 9 (g). −12, Y direction thrust generating means 22-10, 22-11, in FIG. 9H, X direction thrust generating means 21-12, 21-13, Y direction thrust generating means 22-11, 22-13, FIG. In (i), X direction thrust generating means 21-12, 21-14, Y direction thrust generating means It is carried out by 2-12,22-13.

  Here, four or more thrust generating means 21 and 22 are located under the flat plate 6, but at this time, the center of gravity of the plate 6 is within the region surrounded by the plurality of thrust generating means 21 and 22 to be operated. The combination of the thrust generating means 21 and 22 is selected so that. By making such a selection, the flat plate 6 can be moved stably.

  Next, in FIG.9 (i), the process in the workpiece | work process part 14 of the workpiece | work 9-1 is complete | finished. When the processing is completed, as shown in FIG. 10 (j), the first flat plate 6-1 moves to the first plate loading / unloading section 15, and the first workpiece loading / unloading mechanism 17 moves the workpiece 9-1. Is carried out of the apparatus. On the other hand, the second flat plate 6-2 on which the workpiece 9-2 is placed moves to the workpiece processing unit 14, and processing is started.

  Next, in FIG. 10 (k), while the workpiece 9-2 is being processed by the workpiece processing unit 14, the workpiece 9-3 is loaded into the apparatus by the first workpiece loading / unloading mechanism 17, and the first It is mounted on the flat plate 6-1. As described above, the above-described operation is repeated, and a plurality of workpieces 9 are continuously processed.

It is sectional drawing which shows the structure of the stage apparatus based on invention of 1st Embodiment. It is a top view of the stage apparatus concerning the invention of a 1st embodiment. It is the figure which showed the relationship of the stage base 1 of the stage apparatus shown in FIG. 1, the plane plate 6, and nine thrust generation means. It is the figure which showed the relationship of the stage base 1 of the stage apparatus shown in FIG. 1, the plane plate 6, and nine thrust generation means. It is the figure which showed the relationship of the stage base 1 of the stage apparatus shown in FIG. 1, the plane plate 6, and nine thrust generation means. It is a top view for demonstrating the structure and operation | movement of a stage apparatus based on invention of 2nd Embodiment. It is a top view for demonstrating the structure and operation | movement of a stage apparatus based on invention of 2nd Embodiment. It is a top view for demonstrating the structure and operation | movement of a stage apparatus based on invention of 2nd Embodiment. It is a top view for demonstrating the structure and operation | movement of a stage apparatus based on invention of 2nd Embodiment. It is a top view for demonstrating the structure and operation | movement of a stage apparatus based on invention of 2nd Embodiment. It is sectional drawing which shows the structure of the exposure apparatus to which the XY (theta) movement stage based on invention of a previous application is applied. It is a top view of an XYθ moving stage. 4 is a perspective view showing an example of a specific configuration of thrust generating means 2. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a specific configuration of a reference support member 3. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a specific configuration of an auxiliary support member 4. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing the relationship between a platen 8 provided on a flat stage 5 and a magnetic pole 24 provided on a thrust generating means 2. FIG. It is a top view of the stage apparatus for demonstrating the malfunction when the plane plate 6 moves to the end of a movement range, when only three thrust generation means 2 are arrange | positioned.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Stage base 2 Thrust generating means 21, 211-1 to 21-14 X direction thrust generating means 22, 222-1 to 22-13 Y direction thrust generating means 23 Leaf spring 24 Magnetic poles 24a to 24d Magnetic pole 25 Air ejection hole 26 Permanent Magnet 27a, 27b Coil 3 Reference support member 31 Air ejection hole 32 Air pad 33 Base 34 Spherical bearing 4 Auxiliary support member 41 Air ejection hole 42 Air pad 43 Intermediate platform 45 Air cylinder 46 Spherical bearing 5 Planar stage 6 Plane plate 6-1 First Flat plate 6-2 Second flat plate 7 Honeycomb core 8 Platens 8a to 8g Convex pole 81 Gap 82 Ferromagnetic material 83 Non-magnetic material 9, 9-1, 9-2, 9-3 Work 10 Projection lens 11 X Directional laser interferometer 12 Y-direction laser interferometer 13 Control unit 14 Work processing unit 15 First plate loading / unloading unit 16 Second Plate carrying-out section 17 first workpiece loading and unloading mechanism 18 second work loading and unloading mechanism 19 Handler

Claims (4)

In the stage device that moves the plate holding the workpiece in the XY directions perpendicular to the plate surface,
Stage base,
A plurality of thrust generating means fixed to the stage base and having magnetic poles for ejecting air and generating a moving magnetic field;
A plate that is provided with a planar platen having a grid-like convex pole formed on the surface facing the thrust generating means and is driven by the thrust generating means;
Plate position detecting means for detecting the position of the plate relative to the stage base;
A stage apparatus comprising: a control unit that selects a thrust generating means to be operated among the plurality of thrust generating means based on a plate position signal from the plate position detecting means. In the stage device that moves the plate holding the workpiece in the XY directions perpendicular to the plate surface,
Stage base,
A workpiece processing unit that processes a workpiece held on a plate and is placed on the stage base, and a plate that is arranged adjacent to the workpiece processing unit and holds an unprocessed workpiece is loaded into the workpiece processing unit. A plate loading / unloading unit for unloading a plate holding a processed workpiece from the workpiece processing unit;
A workpiece loading / unloading mechanism for loading an unprocessed workpiece on the plate of the plate loading / unloading portion from outside the apparatus or unloading a processed workpiece on the plate of the plate loading / unloading portion;
A plurality of thrust generation means provided in the work processing unit and the plate carry-in conveyance unit, fixed to the stage base and having magnetic poles for ejecting air and generating a moving magnetic field;
A plate that is provided with a planar platen having a grid-like convex pole formed on a surface facing the thrust generating means, and is driven by the thrust generating means;
A plate position detecting means for detecting the position of the plate with respect to the stage base; and a control unit for selecting a thrust generating means to be operated among the plurality of thrust generating means based on a plate position signal from the plate position detecting means. A stage apparatus comprising:   The stage apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a plurality of sets each including a plate loading / unloading unit and a workpiece loading / unloading mechanism for loading / unloading a workpiece to / from the plate loading / unloading unit are provided. The plurality of thrust generating means are arranged such that a thrust generating means for generating a thrust in the X direction and a thrust generating means for generating a thrust in the Y direction are arranged side by side, regardless of the movement position of the plate. The stage apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein at least three of the thrust generating means are operated.

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