Abstract: An exposure apparatus includes a first exposure apparatus used for exposing a peripheral portion of a wafer in maskless manner, the first exposure apparatus including a light source configured to emit light, a stage on which the wafer is to be placed, and a light controller configured to control the light emitted from the light source and irradiated onto a peripheral portion of the wafer placed on the stage, the light controller controlling at least one of shape, size and coverage on the wafer of the light emitted from the light source.

Abstract: An immersion lithography apparatus includes: a projection optical system which projects a pattern of a mask onto a substrate; a substrate cleaning unit which cleans the substrate prior to projection of the pattern; a liquid supply mechanism which supplies the same liquid to an immersion region between the projection optical system and the substrate and to the substrate cleaning unit; a first liquid discharge path through which the liquid discharged from the immersion region is passed; and a second liquid discharge path through which the liquid discharged from the substrate cleaning unit is passed.

Abstract: There is provided a surface position measuring system which includes a reflectivity computing module which computes predictive reflectivities of a plurality of circuit patterns, an inspection light source which irradiates an inspection light onto each of a plurality of inspection areas, area by area, above the plurality of circuit patterns under irradiation conditions determined based on a corresponding each of the predictive reflectivities of the plurality of circuit patterns, and a photodetector which detects a reflected inspection light reflected from each of the plurality of inspection areas to detect a surface position of a corresponding each of the plurality of inspection areas.

Abstract: According to an aspect of the invention, there is provided an exposure apparatus including a chemical filter disposed in an air conditioning system to reduce a concentration of impurities in a gas, an optical component arranged to be exposed to the gas on a downstream side of the chemical filter, an irradiation section which irradiates the optical component with light of a wavelength equal to that of light for an exposure process, and a measurement section which measures a transmittance of the light applied from the irradiation section and transmitted through the optical component.

Abstract: A system for making a recipe for each of manufacturing tools used to manufacture products includes a merging unit merging product information for the products and process information for each of manufacturing processes used for the products to make intermediate recipe data, and a making unit making the recipe for each of the manufacturing tools by merging information of the intermediate recipe data and information of a basic recipe including information of parameters, which specify operations of the manufacturing tools and are commonly set in the manufacturing processes.

Abstract: An immersion exposure apparatus includes a substrate holding unit which holds a substrate to be exposed, a projection lens provided above the substrate holding unit to supply exposure light to the substrate held on the substrate holding unit, a liquid supply unit which supplies a liquid to an area between the substrate held on the substrate holding unit and the projection lens, and a structural unit which surrounds the substrate holding unit and which is configured to supply an interposer to an area between the structural unit and the substrate held on the substrate holding unit.

Abstract: An exposure apparatus correction system comprising: a displacement calculator which calculates matching displacements between a first inspection pattern and a second inspection pattern, the first inspection pattern being transferred by an external first exposure apparatus, the second inspection pattern being positioned with respect to the first inspection pattern and transferred by a second exposure apparatus; an approximator which applies design coordinate systems and values of the calculated matching displacements to approximate expressions in which the matching displacements and a relationship between coordinate systems including the second inspection pattern is approximated by using a plurality of parameters, thereby allocating estimators to the plurality of respective parameters, the plurality of parameters having a mutually complementary relationship; a rounder which rounds estimators of the allocated estimators which are out of an effective range restricted by the second exposure apparatus to fall with

Abstract: This invention discloses an immersion exposure method which executes immersion exposure for an exposure target film by transferring an image of a pattern formed on a mask onto the exposure target film through an immersion medium. A first vapor pressure as the target value in an immersion exposure atmosphere which surrounds the immersion medium is set. A second vapor pressure in the immersion exposure atmosphere is measured. The first vapor pressure is compared with the second vapor pressure. Whether to adjust the vapor pressure in the immersion exposure atmosphere is selected in accordance with the comparison result.

Abstract: A system for controlling an overlay includes a processing data receiving module receiving a processing data string describing a name of an exposure process for a target layer and an original control set value of overlays between the target layer and underlying layers below the target layer; an inspection data receiving module receiving inspection data strings describing names of inspection processes and inspection values determined by the inspection processes inspecting respective overlays between the target layer and the underlying layers; a data combining module combining the processing data string and each of the inspection data strings using a combining condition table so as to create a correction data table; and a control set value calculation module calculating a corrected control set value based on the inspection values of the correction data table.

Abstract: There is disclosed an immersion exposure method of carrying out an exposure process in a state that liquid is at least partly filled between a substrate to be exposed and a projection optical system of an exposure apparatus carrying out the exposure process, comprising carrying out a process of making large a contact angle to the liquid with at least outer peripheral portion of a main surface of the substrate compared with a contact angle to the liquid with an area adjacent to the outer peripheral portion of the substrate, which area is a part of a surface of a substrate supporting side of a substrate support member supporting the substrate included in the exposure apparatus, and carrying out the exposure process.

Abstract: An exposure system includes, (a) an exposure apparatus, and (b) a displacement correction apparatus having a curvature information storage unit configured to store curvature information of a reticle; a displacement information calculation unit configured to calculate displacement generated in the reticle being fixed on a reticle stage of an exposure apparatus based on the curvature information; and a correction information calculation unit configured to calculate correction information for correcting a projection lens of the exposure apparatus based on the displacement.

Abstract: A system for making a recipe for each of manufacturing tools used to manufacture products includes a merging unit merging product information for the products and process information for each of manufacturing processes used for the products to make intermediate recipe data, and a making unit making the recipe for each of the manufacturing tools by merging information of the intermediate recipe data and information of a basic recipe including information of parameters, which specify operations of the manufacturing tools and are commonly set in the manufacturing processes.

Abstract: An exposure system includes a simulator speculating first and second calculated doses to project first and second reference marks onto first and second resist films, respectively, an exposure tool projecting the first reference mark onto the first resist film at test doses to form test resist patterns, a choose module choosing an optimum pattern among the test resist patterns and choosing a first optimum dose used for the optimum pattern, and a dose calculator calculating a second optimum dose for the second reference mark by correcting the first optimum dose based on the first and the second calculated doses.

Abstract: An exposure processing system comprises an exposure apparatus to expose a resist on a wafer, a heating apparatus comprising heating apparatus units, the heating apparatus heating the exposed resist by a heating apparatus unit in the heating apparatus units, a developing apparatus comprising developing apparatus units, the developing apparatus developing the exposed and heated resist by a developing apparatus unit in the developing apparatus units, and a control apparatus to control the exposure apparatus by using correction data so that a wafer on process object being exposed, the correction data being data for correcting a dimensional dispersion of a resist pattern caused by a pair of heating apparatus unit and developing apparatus unit used for the wafer on the process object, the pair of heating and developing apparatus unit comprising a heating and developing apparatus unit in the heating and developing apparatus used for the wafer on the process object.

Abstract: An exposure system includes, (a) an exposure apparatus, and (b) a displacement correction apparatus having a curvature information storage unit configured to store curvature information of a reticle; a displacement information calculation unit configured to calculate displacement generated in the reticle being fixed on a reticle stage of an exposure apparatus based on the curvature information; and a correction information calculation unit configured to calculate correction information for correcting a projection lens of the exposure apparatus based on the displacement.

Abstract: The method of measuring the aberration of the projection optics, according to the present invention includes the following steps. In the first step, the first mask pattern including the first pattern in which a line and space pattern is arranged on a photomask to be linearly symmetrical, and the second pattern in which line patterns having a large line width are arranged on outer sides of the first pattern, to be linearly symmetrical, is transferred on a substrate. In the second step, the second mask pattern in which a patter designed to leave a part of the first pattern and a pattern designed to leave the entire second pattern are arranged to be linearly symmetrical, is transferred on the same substrate, so as to superimpose it on the transferred first pattern. In the third step, the position of the transferred pattern of the second pattern, and the predetermined position of the pattern section of the transferred pattern of the first pattern, which is left in the second step are detected.