Abstract: A condenser lens system is provided for forming an effective circular source of NUV-DUV radiation which is the telecentric stop of the system and is characterized by a short focal length and higher marginal irradiance to compensate for marginal cosine losses. The system utilizes a long arc medium/low pressure mercury lamp which is surrounded by a large paraboloidal reflector and is mounted below the focal point of the reflector to generate a converging radiation beam directed to the condenser lens system. The system then projects the effective circular source of NUV-DUV radiation to a lens system comprising two plano convex lenses to convert the effective circular source into a collimated beam for out-of-contact printing of large substrates. The highly collimated and spatially coherent beam can be used to irradiate a telecentric objective for projection exposure on wafer steppers or flood exposure systems.

Abstract: An optical system is provided for forming an effective image source of DUV radiation which is characterized by symmetry, high uniformity of ray bundle distribution, high spatial stability and high brightness. The system utilizes an elongated medium/low pressure mercury lamp which is surrounded by a large lightly diffused ellipsoidal reflector. The elongated medium/low pressure mercury source is converted by the lightly diffused ellipsoidal reflector into a large circular radiant source which becomes the effective object source of a condenser lens system. The effective object source of the ellipsoidal reflector is projected through a small diameter condenser lens system where it is reduced between six to ten times to an effective image source.

Abstract: Apparatus for irradiating deep ultraviolet (DUV) photoresist-sensitive material on a single substrate, such as a wafer, from a xenon lamp source providing pulsed radiation in the DUV range. A spherical reflector reinforces direct radiation to provide a radiation beam with predetermined divergence confined by a cylindrical baffle. The walls of the baffle are either reflective or absorptive to provide either a curing function or mask exposure imaging function as desired.A wafer having single layer or multi-layer photoresist material sensitive to DUV is either exposed for imaging for pattern development with high resolution and uniformity even with thin photoresist layers or for curing the patterned layers.

Abstract: Apparatus for flood exposing deep ultraviolet (DUV) photoresist material from a xenon lamp source providing pulsed radiation in the DUV range formed into an annular beam by a paraboloid reflector. The radiation beam is substantially collimated with a preferred divergence of 4.degree. for mask (imaging) development. Wafers having single-layer or multi-layer photoresist material sensitive to UV radiation are flood exposed to achieve, with high resolution, imaging, even if the photoresist layers are thin. The apparatus is also used to cure DUV-sensitive photoresist material with the radiation beam having the same or preferably greater divergence. The photoresist material is flood exposed for either imaging or curing that is both rapid and uniform.

Abstract: An optical system and method for direct human eye visual inspection of specimens of photoresist coated masks for defects as small as 2 .mu.m. The specimens are uniformly illuminated with a partially coherent sodium light that has very high illuminance and constrast levels. The system consists of a high pressure (1-1.5 atmosphere) sodium lamp source projected onto the specimen by a Kohler-type illumination system.

Abstract: The flash lamp shield is used with helical xenon flash lamps to shield the radiation from high current density regions adjacent the anode and cathode of the flash lamp. The inventor has found that helical xenon flash lamps including the shield are particularly effective in exposure systems to expose photoresist materials used in semiconductor manufacturing processes.

Abstract: A radiation system for projecting a uniform field of irradiance to expose an irradiance-sensitive surface (such as a photomask) through a transparency in proximity to, or in contact with, the irradiance sensitive surface (such as a wafer or another mask) comprises a pulsed source of irradiance in the near and deep ultraviolet wavelength spectrum, a doublet condenser lens and doublet field lens disposed serially along an optical axis. Every point in the exposure plane surface is focused on the transparency which is in the exposure plane. The two planes are conjugates of each other and vice versa. For every opening in the mask pattern to be resolved on a photoresist coated wafer or mask there exists a well-defined ray bundle passing through the conjugate point located on the exposure plane conjugate surface. One advantage of the doublet field lens is that its large diameter makes possible the transmission of marginal ray bundles without vignetting on the exposure plane.

Abstract: The life expectancy of the energy storing capacitors in a flash lamp drive circuit is extended by charging them in response to a trigger signal which also initiates the ionization pulse to the lamp after a delay time so that a desired threshold of energy stored in the capacitors is directed to the lamp.