Abstract: A laser processing apparatus according to the present disclosure includes a placement base on which a processing receiving object is placed, an optical system that guides laser light to the processing receiving object, a gas supply port via which a gas is supplied to a laser light irradiated region of the processing receiving object, a gas recovery port via which the supplied gas is recovered, a mover that moves the irradiated region, and a controller that controls, in accordance with the moving direction of the irradiated region, the direction of the flow of the gas flowing from the gas supply port to the gas recovery port, and the controller changes the direction of the gas flow in response to a change in the moving direction of the irradiated region in such a way that the gas flows in the direction opposite the moving direction of the irradiated region.

Abstract: An extreme ultraviolet light generation apparatus includes a droplet target generation device and a solid target replenishment device. The droplet target generation device includes a tank configured to melt a solid target substance to generate a liquid target substance, and a nozzle configured to continuously generate a droplet target from the liquid target substance in the tank and output the droplet target toward a plasma generation region to which pulse laser light is concentrated, and is configured to apply a velocity difference between a plurality of droplet targets including the droplet target so that the plurality of droplet targets coalesce. The solid target replenishment device is configured to replenish the tank with a one-time replenishment amount of the solid target substance such that the coalescence of the plurality of droplet targets is completed before the plurality of droplet targets reach the plasma generation region.

Abstract: A light source parameter information management method for managing information on a parameter of a light source used in an exposure apparatus, the method including acquiring priority target parameter information containing an item of a variable that is a priority target parameter prioritized in the operation of the light source, and a target value of the variable, estimating maintenance information based on the priority target parameter information, the maintenance information containing a value representing the life of a consumable in the light source until maintenance of the consumable, and outputting the maintenance information.

Abstract: A laser processing apparatus according to the present disclosure includes a placement base on which a processing receiving object is placed, an optical system that guides laser light to the processing receiving object, a gas supply port via which a gas is supplied to a laser light irradiated region of the processing receiving object, a gas recovery port via which the supplied gas is recovered, a mover that moves the irradiated region, and a controller that controls, in accordance with the moving direction of the irradiated region, the direction of the flow of the gas flowing from the gas supply port to the gas recovery port, and the controller changes the direction of the gas flow in response to a change in the moving direction of the irradiated region in such a way that the gas flows in the direction opposite the moving direction of the irradiated region.

Abstract: A machine learning method according to a viewpoint of the present disclosure is a machine learning method for creating a learning model configured to estimate the life of a consumable of a laser apparatus, the method including acquiring first life-related information containing data on a parameter relating to the life of the consumable, the data recorded in correspondence with different numbers of oscillation pulses during a period from the start of use of the consumable to replacement thereof, dividing the first life-related information into a plurality of levels each representing the degree of degradation of the consumable in accordance with the numbers of oscillation pulses to create training data, creating the learning model by performing machine learning using the created training data, and saving the created learning model.

Abstract: A laser apparatus includes a grating system; an actuator system configured to adjust a first incident angle on the grating system and a second incident angle on the grating system, the first incident angle being an angle of a first part of an optical beam incident on the grating system, the second incident angle being an angle of a second part of the optical beam incident on the grating system; and a processor configured to control the actuator system to periodically vary the first and second incident angles so that the first and second incident angles are different from each other in at least one of phase and variation range.

Abstract: A laser system according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes a first solid-state laser device, a wavelength conversion system, an excimer amplifier, and a control unit. The first solid-state laser device includes a first multiple semiconductor laser system, a first semiconductor optical amplifier, and a first fiber amplifier. The first multiple semiconductor laser system includes a plurality of first semiconductor lasers configured to perform continuous wave oscillation in a single longitudinal mode with different wavelengths, a first spectrum monitor, and a first beam combiner. The control unit controls an oscillation wavelength and light intensity of each line of a first multiline spectrum generated by the first semiconductor lasers to obtain an excimer laser beam having at least a target center wavelength or a target spectral line width instructed by an external device.

Abstract: A laser radiation system according to a viewpoint of the present disclosure includes a first optical system configured to convert a first laser flux into a second laser flux, a multimirror device including mirrors, configured to be capable of controlling the angle of the attitude of each of the mirrors, and configured to divide the second laser flux into laser fluxes and reflect the laser fluxes in directions to produce the divided laser fluxes, a Fourier transform optical system configured to focus the divided laser fluxes, and a control section configured to control the angle of the attitude of each of the mirrors in such a way that the Fourier transform optical system superimposes the laser fluxes, which are divided by the mirrors separate from each other by at least a spatial coherence length of the second laser flux, on one another.

Abstract: In a laser system according to a viewpoint of the present disclosure, a first amplifier amplifies first pulsed laser light outputted from a first semiconductor laser system into second pulsed laser light, a wavelength conversion system converts the second pulsed laser light in terms of wavelength into third pulsed laser light, and an excimer amplifier amplifies the third pulsed laser light. The first semiconductor laser system includes a first current controller that controls current flowing through a first semiconductor laser in such a way that first laser light outputted from the first semiconductor laser is caused to undergo chirping and a first semiconductor optical amplifier that amplifies the first laser light into pulsed light. The laser system includes a control section that controls the amount of chirping performed on the first pulsed laser light in such a way that excimer laser light having a target spectral linewidth is achieved.

Abstract: A laser irradiation method of irradiating, with a pulse laser beam, an irradiation object in which an impurity source film is formed on a semiconductor substrate includes: reading fluence per pulse of the pulse laser beam with which a rectangular irradiation region set on the irradiation object is irradiated and the number of irradiation pulses the irradiation region is irradiated, the fluence being equal to or larger than a threshold at or beyond which ablation potentially occurs to the impurity source film when the irradiation object is irradiated with pulses of the pulse laser beam in the irradiation pulse number and smaller than a threshold at or beyond which damage potentially occurs to the surface of the semiconductor substrate; calculating a scanning speed Vdx; and moving the irradiation object at the scanning speed Vdx relative to the irradiation region while irradiating the irradiation region with the pulse laser beam at the repetition frequency f.

Abstract: A laser device includes a first actuator configured to adjust an oscillation wavelength of pulse laser light; a second actuator configured to adjust a spectral line width of the pulse laser light; and a processor configured to determine a target spectral line width by reading data specifying a number of irradiation pulses of the pulse laser light with which one location of an irradiation receiving object is irradiated and a difference between a shortest wavelength and a longest wavelength, control the second actuator based on the target spectral line width, and control the first actuator so that the oscillation wavelength periodically changes every number of the irradiation pulses between the shortest wavelength and the longest wavelength.

Abstract: An electronic device manufacturing method according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes determining magnification in a scanning width direction based on a pattern formed in a scanning field of a wafer; measuring a wafer height at points in the scanning field and determining an average value of the wafer height in the scanning width direction; determining a wavelength range of a pulse laser beam in which an allowable CD value is obtained in a case of a focus position based on the average value of the wafer height; determining a first wavelength of the pulse laser beam at which the determined magnification is obtained and determining a target wavelength based on the wavelength range and the first wavelength; outputting a pulse laser beam controlled to have the target wavelength for each pulse; and performing exposure of the scanning field of the wafer to the pulse laser beam.

Abstract: An exposure method includes reading data indicating a relation between parameters and a wavelength difference between a first pulse laser beam and a second pulse laser beam, the parameters being related to exposure conditions under which a semiconductor wafer is exposed to a plurality of pulse laser beams including the first and second pulse laser beams, determining a target value of the wavelength difference based on the data and command values of the parameters; determining a first wavelength of the first pulse laser beam and a second wavelength of the second pulse laser beam based on the target value; outputting a wavelength setting signal to a laser apparatus to cause emission of the pulse laser beams including the first pulse laser beam having the first wavelength and the second pulse laser beam having the second wavelength; and exposing the semiconductor wafer to the pulse laser beams.

Abstract: A mirror for extreme ultraviolet light includes: a substrate (41); a multilayer film (42) provided on the substrate and configured to reflect extreme ultraviolet light; and a capping layer (53) provided on the multilayer film, and the capping layer includes a first layer (61) containing an oxide of a metal, and a second layer (62) arranged between the first layer and the multilayer film and containing at least one of a boride of the metal and a nitride of the metal.

Abstract: A laser processing method of performing laser processing on a transparent material that is transparent to ultraviolet light by using a laser processing system includes: performing relative positioning of a transfer position of a transfer image and the transparent material in an optical axis direction of a pulse laser beam so that the transfer position is set at a position inside the transparent material at a predetermined depth ?Zsf from a surface of the transparent material in the optical axis direction; and irradiating the transparent material with the pulse laser beam having a pulse width of 1 ns to 100 ns inclusive and a beam diameter of 10 ?m to 150 ?m inclusive at the transfer position.

Abstract: A line narrowing gas laser device includes an actuator changing a center wavelength of pulse laser light, and a processor controlling the actuator. The processor reads parameters including a number of irradiation pulses of pulse laser light to be radiated to one location of an irradiation receiving object, a shortest wavelength, and a longest wavelength; sets a first pattern with which the center wavelength is changed to approach the longest wavelength from the shortest wavelength and a second pattern with which the center wavelength is changed to approach the shortest wavelength from the longest wavelength such that at least one of the first pattern and the second pattern when the number of irradiation pulses is an even number is different from corresponding one when the number of irradiation pulses is an odd number; and controls the actuator so that the first pattern and the second pattern are alternately performed.

Abstract: An exposure method includes reading data representing a relationship between a first parameter relating to an energy ratio between energy of first pulsed laser light having a first wavelength and energy of second pulsed laser light having a second wavelength longer than the first wavelength and a second parameter relating to a sidewall angle of a resist film that is the angle of a sidewall produced when the resist film is exposed to the first pulsed laser light and the second pulsed laser light, and determining a target value of the first parameter based on the data and a target value of the second parameter; and exposing the resist film to the first pulsed laser light and the second pulsed laser light by controlling a narrowed-line gas laser apparatus to output the first pulsed laser light and the second pulsed laser light based on the target value of the first parameter.

Abstract: A line narrowing device includes a first prism; first and second gratings arranged on the optical path of the light beam having passed through the first prism at positions different in a direction of grooves of either the first grating or the second grating; a beam adjustment optical system arranged on the optical path of the light beam between the first prism and at least one grating of the first and second gratings, and causing a first portion of the light beam to be incident on the first grating and causing a second portion of the light beam to be incident on the second grating; a first actuator adjusting an incident angle of the first portion on the first grating; a second actuator adjusting an incident angle of the second portion on the second grating; and a third actuator adjusting an energy ratio of the first and second portions.

Abstract: A control method of a line narrowing gas laser device includes receiving a command of either a single-wavelength mode command or a multi-wavelength mode command from an external apparatus, and controlling the line narrowing gas laser device to generate pulse laser light in accordance with the command.

Abstract: A line narrowing device includes first and second prisms disposed at positions different in a wavelength dispersion direction of any of the first and second prisms, a third prism disposed on the optical path of an optical beam and through which the beam width of the optical beam is enlarged and first and second parts of the optical beam are incident on the first and second prisms, respectively, a grating disposed across the optical path of the first part having passed through the first prism and the optical path of the second part having passed through the second prism, a first actuator configured to adjust the incident angle of the first part on the grating, a second actuator configured to adjust the incident angle of the second part on the grating, and a third actuator configured to adjust an energy ratio of the first and second parts.