WO2020017865A1

WO2020017865A1 - Apparatus for monitoring gas component of gas laser

Info

Publication number: WO2020017865A1
Application number: PCT/KR2019/008770
Authority: WO
Inventors: 차동호
Original assignee: 차동호
Priority date: 2018-07-17
Filing date: 2019-07-16
Publication date: 2020-01-23
Also published as: CN112424696A; KR102054372B1

Abstract

The present invention relates to an apparatus for monitoring a gas laser. The present invention is connected to a gas laser generation chamber so as to be capable of receiving two types of gases from the gas laser generation chamber, and monitors components of the two types of gases accommodated in a reaction space of a gas laser emitting chamber, thereby enabling the insertion or generation of unnecessary substances in the gas laser generation chamber to be quickly identified and measurements responding thereto to be taken. Therefore, a technology capable of ensuring the stability of a laser beam output is disclosed.

Description

Gas component monitoring device of gas laser

The present invention relates to a gas component monitoring apparatus for a gas laser, and more particularly, to a gas laser gas component monitoring apparatus capable of monitoring a component of a heterogeneous gas present in a chamber in which a laser is generated.

In the semiconductor or display device manufacturing process, the exposure process uses an exposure apparatus to form a pattern by selectively scanning light on the photosensitive film according to a predetermined pattern. Since the exposure apparatus requires high precision for semiconductor device and display fabrication, a laser is used as a light source.

An exposure apparatus using a laser as a light source is provided with a gas laser generation chamber which fills a specific gas inside and applies an electrode to generate a laser by mutual action of the excited gases. The specific gas supplied into the gas laser generation chamber is In order to react with each other, an ideal laser is produced only when each of them is supplied at a constant pressure with an optimum composition ratio.

As time goes by as the laser is generated in the gas laser generating chamber, the amount of impurities is increased in the laser generating chamber by the plasma of high energy by the material and the reaction gas inside the chamber.

These impurities reduce the oscillation efficiency of the gas laser, decrease or destabilize the laser light output, and cause a change in the profile of the laser beam. As such, when the light output of the laser beam becomes unstable or a change occurs in the profile, the defect rate inevitably increases in the semiconductor manufacturing process.

Therefore, there has been a great demand for a technology capable of catching and coping with changes in impurities, such as impurities, generated or generated within the gas laser generation chamber.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems, and it is necessary to quickly identify and cope with unnecessary substances when they are introduced or generated in a gas laser generation chamber generating a laser using a mixed gas containing heterogeneous gases. It is to provide a gas component monitoring device of the gas laser to continuously monitor the situation in the gas laser chamber.

The gas component monitoring apparatus of a gas laser according to an embodiment of the present invention for achieving the above object provides a reaction space in which a mixed gas containing heterogeneous gas is accommodated so that a gas laser can be generated. A device attached to a gas laser generation chamber, the apparatus being connected to the gas laser generation chamber side to receive the mixed gas from the gas laser generation chamber side, and the mixture accommodated in the reaction space of the gas laser generation chamber side. Monitoring the composition of the gas may be a feature.

Here, the gas component monitoring apparatus of the gas laser may be further characterized by acquiring information on the introduction or generation of components of the mixed gas or unnecessary substances contained in the reaction space by using spectroscopic means. have.

Further, the gas component monitoring apparatus of the gas laser, the inlet pipe coupled to one side is in communication with the gas laser generating chamber; And a monitoring chamber coupled to be in communication with the other side of the inflow pipe and providing an analysis space capable of receiving and receiving the mixed gas through the inflow pipe. It may be another feature to include a.

Further, the gas component monitoring apparatus of the gas laser, the electrode is mounted to the monitoring chamber, the electrode for receiving a power from the outside to form a plasma on the analysis chamber in the monitoring chamber; It may also be another feature to include a further.

Further, the gas component monitoring device of the gas laser is disposed on one side of the monitoring chamber, and the information on the introduction or generation of the components or the unnecessary substances of the mixed gas from the plasma formed on the analysis space in the monitoring chamber. Spectrometer to obtain; It may also be another feature to include more.

Here, the gas component monitoring device of the gas laser, the one end is coupled to communicate with the monitoring chamber, the outlet pipe for guiding the movement of the mixed gas is discharged from the reaction space; It may also be another feature to include a further.

Here, the gas laser generating chamber is provided with a discharge pipe through which the mixed gas can be discharged from the reaction space to the outside, and the other end of the outlet pipe is coupled to be in communication with the discharge pipe. You may.

The other end of the outlet pipe may be coupled to the gas laser generation chamber so that the monitoring chamber and the gas laser generation chamber can communicate with each other.

In addition, the gas laser generating chamber is provided with a discharge pipe for discharging the heterogeneous gas from the reaction space to the outside, the outlet pipe is coupled to be in communication with the discharge pipe, the accommodating in the monitoring chamber It may be another feature that a switching valve is provided in the outlet pipe so that a mixed gas can selectively flow out to either of the gas laser generating chamber and the outlet pipe.

The monitoring chamber may further include an optical window provided to observe the plasma formed on the analysis chamber in the monitoring chamber.

Furthermore, the optical window is chemically durable and is formed of quartz or sapphire material to secure a predetermined range or more of a wavelength range of light that can be transmitted to the spectrometer. You may.

The gas component monitoring apparatus of the gas laser according to the present invention can continuously monitor the components of the mixed gas in the gas laser generating chamber. Therefore, when unnecessary substances are introduced into or generated in the gas laser generation chamber, it is possible to quickly identify and respond to them, thereby ensuring stability of the output of the laser beam and maintaining a constant profile of the generated laser beam. It helps to improve the quality of semiconductor and flat panel display.

1 is a view schematically showing a gas laser generation chamber to make a gas component monitoring apparatus of a gas laser according to an embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a view schematically showing a configuration to which the gas component monitoring apparatus of a gas laser according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied.

Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings to be described in more detail with respect to the present invention will be described.

1 is a view schematically showing a gas laser generation chamber to explain a gas component monitoring apparatus of a gas laser according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 is a gas component monitoring apparatus of a gas laser according to an embodiment of the present invention A diagram schematically showing the applied configuration.

1 and 2, the gas component monitoring apparatus of a gas laser according to an embodiment of the present invention may be attached to a gas laser generating chamber, and the whole system 10 may include a gas laser generating chamber and a gas laser. Gas component monitoring apparatus.

Here, 'gas component monitoring of the gas laser' means that the expression means component monitoring of a mixed gas including heterogeneous gases existing in the chamber generating the gas laser.

In addition, for the convenience of explanation and understanding will be described by simply abbreviating the 'gas component monitoring device of the gas laser' according to an embodiment of the present invention as a 'component monitoring device'.

The gas laser generation chamber 100 provides a reaction space in which a mixed gas containing heterogeneous gases is accommodated so that the gas laser can be generated.

In the gas laser generating chamber 100, a plurality of gas supply pipes 110 are provided to supply heterogeneous gases from the outside into the reaction space, and each gas is moved along the gas supply pipe 110 to provide a gas laser generating chamber ( 100) is supplied to the reaction space, and mixed on the reaction space.

The gas laser generating chamber 100 and the discharge pipe 120 are connected to each other, and the mixed gas in the gas laser generating chamber 100 is discharged to the outside through the discharge pipe 120. Therefore, the pressure caused by the mixed gas in the reaction space in the gas laser generation chamber 100 may be maintained at a constant level.

As the heterogeneous gas supplied to the gas laser generation chamber 100, Ne, Xe, Hcl, or the like may be used, and the pressure in the reaction space is preferably maintained within a range between 1 atm and 6 atm.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 1, the gas laser generation chamber 100 is provided with a metal electrode for generating a laser using power supplied through a power supply, and in the gas laser generation chamber 100. A gas circulation fan is provided to uniformly mix and distribute heterogeneous gases in the reaction space.

When the mixed gas is accommodated in the gas laser generating chamber 100 and power is supplied to the metal electrode, a laser is generated and radiated to the front of the gas laser generating chamber 100.

As such, the components of the mixed gas including heterogeneous gases may be monitored through the component monitoring apparatus so as to stably generate the laser generated in the gas laser generation chamber 100, thereby identifying whether the unnecessary substances are introduced or generated. .

The component monitoring device is connected to the gas laser generating chamber 100 so as to receive the mixed gas from the gas laser generating chamber 100 and monitors the components of the heterogeneous gas contained in the reaction space of the gas laser generating chamber 100. The introduction or generation of undesired or unnecessary substances.

The component monitoring device may be able to obtain information on the components of the heterogeneous gas contained in the reaction space in the gas laser generation chamber 100 or information on the introduction or generation of unnecessary substances by using spectroscopic means. .

The component monitoring device preferably includes an inlet tube 210, a monitoring chamber 200, and an electrode 230, and further preferably includes a spectrometer 250 and an outlet tube 220.

Inlet pipe 210 is coupled so that one side can be in communication with the gas laser generation chamber (100). And the other side is coupled to the monitoring chamber 200. Therefore, the mixed gas in the reaction space in the gas laser generating chamber 100 flows into the monitoring chamber 200 through the inlet pipe 210.

The monitoring chamber 200 is coupled to be in communication with the other side of the inlet pipe 210. The inlet pipe 210 may be one or multiple. Here, the inlet pipe 210 is also preferably attached to the gas regulator 310, such as an orifice or mass flow controller (MFC) to adjust the amount of gas flowing in. In addition, an analysis space for receiving and receiving heterogeneous gases from the gas laser generation chamber 100 through the inlet pipe 210 is provided in the monitoring chamber 200.

Electrode 230 is preferably mounted to the monitoring chamber 200. When power is supplied from the outside to the electrode 230, plasma is formed in the analysis chamber in the monitoring chamber 200 into which the mixed gas is introduced.

The optical chamber 240 is preferably provided in the monitoring chamber 200 so that the spectrometer 250 can observe the plasma formed in the analysis chamber in the monitoring chamber 200.

Here, the optical window 240 has physical and chemical durability, and is formed of quartz or sapphire material to secure or provide a certain level or more of a wavelength range of light that can be transmitted to the spectrometer 250. It is preferable.

The spectrometer 250 is disposed on one side of the monitoring chamber 200. That is, the light emitted through the optical window 240 of the monitoring chamber 200 is disposed to be irradiated.

Alternatively, an embodiment in which an optical fiber is disposed between the optical window 240 and the spectrometer 250 to transmit light through the optical fiber is also sufficiently possible.

Light emitted from the plasma formed in the analysis chamber in the monitoring chamber 200 passes through the optical window 240 and is incident to the spectrometer 250. The spectrometer 250 obtains information on the components of the mixed gas in the monitoring chamber 200 through the light incident on the spectrometer 250.

As such, through the information on the components of the mixed gas obtained through the spectrometer 250, it is possible to identify and continuously monitor the introduction or occurrence of components or component ratios of heterogeneous gases in the gas laser generation chamber 100. do.

Outflow pipe 220 is provided so that the mixed gas is moved from the monitoring chamber 200. One end of the outlet pipe 220 is coupled to be in communication with the monitoring chamber 200. In this case, it is also preferable that the pump 320 is provided in the outlet pipe 220 so that the mixed gas is moved out of the monitoring chamber 200.

The other end of the outlet pipe 220 is coupled to the gas laser generation chamber 100, and the mixed gas that is moved from the monitoring chamber 200 may return to the gas laser generation chamber 100.

Alternatively, the outlet pipe 220 may be connected to the discharge pipe 120 connected to the gas laser generation chamber 100. In this case, the mixed gas from the monitoring chamber 200 may be moved to the discharge pipe 120 and discharged to the outside along the discharge pipe 120. If necessary, it is also preferable that the discharge valve 160 is provided in the discharge pipe 120.

More preferably, the switching valve 260 may be provided in the outlet pipe 220 as referred to in the drawing. By the switching of the switching valve 260, the mixed gas traveling along the outlet pipe 220 may be returned to the gas laser generation chamber 100 or may be introduced into the discharge pipe 120 to be discharged to the outside along the discharge pipe 120. It is desirable to be able.

As such, the mixed gas flows into the monitoring chamber 200 through the inflow pipe 210, and the mixed gas flows out of the monitoring chamber 200 through the outflow pipe 220, so that the pressure of the mixed gas in the monitoring chamber 200 is reduced. You can also keep it at a certain level.

As described above, the gas component monitoring apparatus of the gas laser according to the present invention receives the mixed gas from the gas laser generation chamber and spectroscopically grasps the component or the component ratio through the plasma to detect the component or component of the mixed gas in the gas laser generation chamber. It is possible to continuously monitor the introduction or occurrence of unnecessary substances.

Therefore, the stability of the output of the generated laser beam is secured, and helps to keep the profile of the generated laser beam constant. Inflow of each kind of heterogeneous gas flowing into the gas laser generation chamber as needed while continuously monitoring the introduction or generation of components of the mixed gas or unnecessary substances so that such high quality gas laser can be stably generated and radiated. Since it can be precisely controlled, there is an advantage in that it can stably provide a UV light source in a manufacturing process such as semiconductor, flat panel display.

Such a gas component monitoring device of a gas laser may be widely applied to an excimer laser used in an annealing device as well as pattern exposure.

As described above, the detailed description of the present invention has been made by the embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, but since the above-described embodiments have only been described with reference to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the present invention has been described above. It should not be understood to be limited only to the embodiments, and the scope of the present invention should be understood by the claims and equivalent concepts described below.

Claims

An apparatus used by being attached to a gas laser generating chamber that provides a reaction space in which a mixed gas containing heterogeneous gas is accommodated so that a gas laser can be generated.

Connected to the gas laser generating chamber side to receive the mixed gas from the gas laser generating chamber side, and monitoring a component of the mixed gas contained in the reaction space of the gas laser generating chamber;

Obtaining information on the introduction or generation of components of the mixed gas or unnecessary substances contained in the reaction space by using spectroscopic means,

An inlet pipe coupled to one side of the gas laser generating chamber;

A monitoring chamber coupled to be in communication with the other side of the inflow pipe, the monitoring chamber providing an analysis space capable of receiving the mixed gas through the inflow pipe; Including,

An electrode mounted in the monitoring chamber and configured to receive a power from an outside to form a plasma in the analysis chamber in the monitoring chamber; Gas component monitoring device of the gas laser further comprising.
The method of claim 1,

The gas component monitoring device of the gas laser,

A spectrometer disposed at one side of the monitoring chamber and configured to acquire information on the introduction or generation of a component or unnecessary material of the mixed gas from a plasma formed on the analysis chamber in the monitoring chamber; Gas component monitoring device of the gas laser further comprising.
The method of claim 2,

The gas component monitoring device of the gas laser,

An outlet pipe coupled to the one end thereof so as to communicate with the monitoring chamber and guiding a movement of the mixed gas from the reaction space; Gas component monitoring device of the gas laser further comprising.
The method of claim 3, wherein

The gas laser generating chamber,

A discharge pipe for discharging the mixed gas to the outside from the reaction space is provided,

The other end of the outlet pipe is a gas component monitoring device of the gas laser, characterized in that coupled to communicate with the discharge pipe.
The method of claim 3, wherein

And the other end of the outlet pipe is coupled to the gas laser generation chamber so that the monitoring chamber and the gas laser generation chamber can communicate with each other.
The method of claim 4, wherein

The gas laser generating chamber,

A discharge pipe is provided to discharge the heterogeneous gas from the reaction space to the outside,

The outlet pipe is coupled to be in communication with the discharge pipe,

And a switching valve is provided in the outlet pipe so that the mixed gas contained in the monitoring chamber can selectively flow out to either of the gas laser generating chamber and the discharge pipe.
The method of claim 2,

And an optical window is provided in the monitoring chamber so as to observe the plasma formed on the analysis chamber in the monitoring chamber.
The method of claim 7, wherein

The optical window

Chemical durability and gas component monitoring device of the gas laser, characterized in that formed of quartz (quartz) or sapphire (sapphire) material to ensure a certain level or more of the wavelength range of light that can be transmitted to the spectrometer side.