Abstract: A wafer holding apparatus for holding a wafer including a wafer holder on which the wafer is placed; and a lift pin that is configured to be lifted up and down with respect to the wafer holder in a direction along a normal line of a placement surface of the wafer, the lift pin includes a tip part, the tip part includes: a bottom part that forms a suction region for sucking a rear surface of the wafer; and a convex part that supports the rear surface of the wafer in the suction region. When a substrate is placed on a target position, it is possible to prevent a local deterioration of flatness of the substrate even if the substrate is large.

Abstract: In a carrier system, a chuck unit is used to hold a placed wafer from above, and vertical-motion pins use suction to hold the wafer from below. Then, the chuck unit and the vertical-motion pins are subsequently lowered until a bottom surface of the wafer comes into contact with a wafer table. During the lowering, the holding force exerted by the chuck unit and the arrangement of chuck members are optimally adjusted such that, as a result of the restraint of the wafer by the chuck unit and the vertical-motion pins, localized surplus-restraint is imparted to the wafer, and warping does not occur.

Abstract: A manufacturing method of an exposure apparatus includes adjusting a positioning device that determines a positional relation at the time of docking between a body and a stage module such that a positional relation between an absolute reference surface of a metrology frame of the body and a stage position reference surface of the stage module becomes a desired relation. Accordingly, after that, only by docking the body and the stage module with each other via the positioning device, the positional relation between the absolute reference surface of the body and the stage position reference surface of the stage module becomes a desired relation.

Abstract: A stage device is equipped with a fine movement stage on which a wafer is mounted, a coarse movement stage formed into a frame shape that encloses the periphery of the fine movement stage, which supports the fine movement stage such that the fine movement stage is relatively movable and which is movable along an XY plane, a planar motor that drives the coarse movement stage in a predetermined range within the XY plane, and an actuator that drives the fine movement stage with respect to the coarse movement stage. Therefore, the size, in a direction perpendicular to the XY plane (height direction), of a movable body made up of the fine movement stage and the coarse movement stage can be reduced, compared with a wafer stage having a coarse/fine movement configuration in which the fine movement stage is mounted on the coarse movement stage.

Abstract: Positional information of wafer stages is measured by a plurality of encoder heads, Z heads and the like that a measurement bar placed below surface has, using gratings placed on the lower surface of fine movement stages. Consequently, high-precision measurement of the positional information of the wafer stages can be performed. Further, since a guide surface of the wafer stages is formed by the two guide surface forming members placed side by side via a predetermined clearance, each guide surface forming member is easier to handle and also maintenance of the vicinity of the guide surface forming member is easier to perform, compared with the case where the guide surface forming members are integrated.

Abstract: An exposure apparatus capable of suppressing the occurrence of exposure defects is provided. The exposure apparatus exposes a substrate with exposure light via a liquid.

Abstract: When a liquid immersion area (liquid) formed on a wafer stage is moved onto another wafer stage, a fine movement stage position measuring system measures positional information of the wafer stage, interferometers of a coarse movement stage position measuring system measure positional information of the another wafer stage, and different interferometers measure positional information of the wafer stage. Based on these measurement results, the wafer stage and the another wafer stage are made to be in proximity to each other and are driven while the scrum state is maintained, and thereby the liquid immersion area (liquid) formed on the wafer stage can be moved onto the another wafer stage.

Abstract: Positional information of each of wafer stages during exposure and during alignment is measured directly under a projection optical system and directly under a primary alignment system, respectively, by a plurality of encoder heads, Z heads and the like, which a measurement bar placed below surface plates has, using gratings placed on the lower surfaces of fine movement stages. Consequently, high-precision measurement of the positional information of the wafer stages can be performed.

Abstract: Positional information of each of wafer stages during exposure and during alignment is measured directly under a projection optical system and directly under a primary alignment system, respectively, by a plurality of encoder heads, Z heads and the like, which a measurement bar placed below surface plates has, using gratings placed on the lower surfaces of fine movement stages. Since a main frame that supports the projection optical system and the measurement bar are separated, deformation of the measurement bar caused by inner stress (including thermal stress) and transmission of vibration or the like from the main frame to the measurement bar, and the like do not occur, which is different from the case where the main frame and the measurement bar are integrated. Consequently, high-precision measurement of the positional information of the wafer stages can be performed.

Abstract: A manufacturing method of an exposure apparatus includes adjusting a positioning device that determines a positional relation at the time of docking between a body and a stage module such that a positional relation between an absolute reference surface of a metrology frame of the body and a stage position reference surface of the stage module becomes a desired relation. Accordingly, after that, only by docking the body and the stage module with each other via the positioning device, the positional relation between the absolute reference surface of the body and the stage position reference surface of the stage module becomes a desired relation.

Abstract: An exposure apparatus is equipped with a wafer stage which holds a wafer and to which one ends of flat tubes having flexibility that transmit the power usage for exposure between the wafer stage and a predetermined external device are connected and which is movable along an XY plane, and a tube carrier which is placed on one side of the wafer stage in an X-axis direction, to which the other ends of the flat tubes are connected, and which moves along the XY plane according to movement of the wafer stage and also moves to the other side in the X-axis direction when the wafer stage moves to the one side in the X-axis direction. Accordingly, the wafer stage hardly receives the drag (tensile force) from the flat tubes and outward protrusion of the flat tubes in the X-axis direction can be restrained.

Abstract: A wafer is loaded on a wafer stage and unloaded from a wafer stage, using a chuck member which holds the wafer from above in a non-contact manner. Accordingly, members and the like to load/unload the wafer on/from the wafer stage do not have to be provided, which can keep the stage from increasing in size and weight. Further, by using the chuck member which holds the wafer from above in a non-contact manner, a thin, flexible wafer can be loaded onto the wafer stage as well as unloaded from the wafer stage without any problems.

Abstract: A first driving section and a second driving section apply a drive farce in an X-axis direction, a Y-axis direction, a Z-axis direction, and a ?x direction, respectively, with respect to one end and the other end of a fine movement stage whose one end and the other end in the Y-axis direction are each supported, so that the fine movement stage is relatively movable with respect to a coarse movement stage within an XY plane. Accordingly, by the first and the second driving sections making drive forces in directions opposite to each other in a ?x direction apply simultaneously to one end and the other end of the fine movement stage (refer to the black arrow in the drawing), the fine movement stage (and the wafer held by the stage) can be deformed to a concave shape or a convex shape within a YZ plane.

Abstract: A wafer stage is driven, based on positional information of a wafer stage measured using a measuring system and tilt information of the wafer stage. This allows the wafer stage to be driven with high precision, with the influence on the wafer stage when the wafer stage is tilted being reduced.

Abstract: When a liquid immersion area (liquid) formed on a wafer stage is moved onto another wafer stage, a fine movement stage position measuring system measures positional information of the wafer stage, interferometers of a coarse movement stage position measuring system measure positional information of the another wafer stage, and different interferometers measure positional information of the wafer stage. Based on these measurement results, the wafer stage and the another wafer stage are made to be in proximity to each other and are driven while the scrum state is maintained, and thereby the liquid immersion area (liquid) formed on the wafer stage can be moved onto the another wafer stage.

Abstract: A stage device is equipped with a fine movement stage on which a wafer is mounted, a coarse movement stage formed into a frame shape that encloses the periphery of the fine movement stage, which supports the fine movement stage such that the fine movement stage is relatively movable and which is movable along an XY plane, a planar motor that drives the coarse movement stage in a predetermined range within the XY plane, and an actuator that drives the fine movement stage with respect to the coarse movement stage. Therefore, the size, in a direction perpendicular to the XY plane (height direction), of a movable body made up of the fine movement stage and the coarse movement stage can be reduced, compared with a wafer stage having a coarse/fine movement configuration in which the fine movement stage is mounted on the coarse movement stage.

Abstract: Positional information of each of wafer stages during exposure and during alignment is measured directly under a projection optical system and directly under a primary alignment system, respectively, by a plurality of encoder heads, Z heads and the like, which a measurement bar placed below surface plates has, using gratings placed on the lower surfaces of fine movement stages. Consequently, high-precision measurement of the positional information of the wafer stages can be performed.

Abstract: Positional information of wafer stages is measured by a plurality of encoder heads, Z heads and the like that a measurement bar placed below surface has, using gratings placed on the lower surface of fine movement stages. Consequently, high-precision measurement of the positional information of the wafer stages can be performed. Further, since a guide surface of the wafer stages is formed by the two guide surface forming members placed side by side via a predetermined clearance, each guide surface forming member is easier to handle and also maintenance of the vicinity of the guide surface forming member is easier to perform, compared with the case where the guide surface forming members are integrated.

Abstract: Positional information of each of wafer stages during exposure and during alignment is measured directly under a projection optical system and directly under a primary alignment system, respectively, by a plurality of encoder heads, Z heads and the like, which a measurement bar placed below surface plates has, using gratings placed on the lower surfaces of fine movement stages. Since a main frame that supports the projection optical system and the measurement bar are separated, deformation of the measurement bar caused by inner stress (including thermal stress) and transmission of vibration or the like from the main frame to the measurement bar, and the like do not occur, which is different from the case where the main frame and the measurement bar are integrated. Consequently, high-precision measurement of the positional information of the wafer stages can be performed.

Abstract: At a measurement bar on which a first measurement head group that measures positional information of a fine movement stage that holds a wafer is arranged, various types of measurement instruments, e.g. an aerial image measuring instrument and the like, used in measurement related exposure such as the optical properties of a projection optical system are arranged. The measurement is performed using the various types of measurement instruments and the exposure conditions such as the optical properties of the projection optical system are adjusted based on the result of the measurement, as needed, and thereby the exposure processing can appropriately be performed on the wafer.