Abstract: An exposure method for exposing a pattern image on a reticle onto a plate through a projection optical system by synchronously scanning the reticle and the plate includes measuring a surface shape of the reticle at a position to be exposed and holding the surface shape as correction data, controlling the synchronous scan based on the correction data, and updating the correction data by repeating measurements of the surface shape of the reticle.

Abstract: A position measuring apparatus which measures positions of first and second marks. The apparatus includes a detection system which detects an image of the first and second marks, an image processing system which processes the image of the first and second marks, and control system which controls the detection system and the image processing system so that at least two images, of which signal intensities are adjusted with respect to the first and second marks, respectively, are obtained.

Abstract: Positions of reticle and stage fiducial marks (16, 15) are measured from image signals that are output by a camera (9) that simultaneously receives reflected light from the reticle fiducial mark (16) and reflected light from the stage fiducial mark (15). An image, which is obtained from an image signal representing the reticle fiducial mark (16), is stored in an image memory (11a) in such a manner that lightness of the image is increased to a predetermined lightness, and the reticle fiducial mark (16) and stage fiducial mark (15) are measured from image signals representing respective ones of the reticle fiducial mark (16) and stage fiducial mark (15).