Submerge self-adapting gas seal device for photoetching machine

Abstract

The invention discloses an immersed self-adapting gas sealing device for a mask aligner. The immersed self-adapting gas sealing device is arranged between a projection lens group and a substrate and consists of an internal member, a middle member, an external member and a deformation member group. In the process that the substrate moves at a high speed to produce a traction action on the liquid, the boundary form of a slit flow field can be changed correspondingly. The self-adapting sealing structure can be used to adjust the caliber size of a hermetic gas passage at real time according to the direction and speed of the substrate movement, thereby correspondingly changing the used hermetic gas flow at different positions, consequently inhibiting the liquid leakage caused by the insufficient hermetic gas pressure at different positions of a sealing boundary and inhibiting the air bubble entrainment caused by excessive hermetic gas pressure, realizing the self-adapting sealing function, and strengthening the reliability and stability of hermetic seal.

Description

technical field [0001] The invention relates to an immersion adaptive gas sealing device in an immersion lithography (Immersion Lithography) system, in particular to an immersion adaptive gas sealing device for a lithography machine. Background technique [0002] Modern lithography equipment is based on optical lithography, which uses an optical system to accurately project and expose the pattern on the mask to the substrate (such as: silicon wafer) coated with photoresist. It includes an ultraviolet light source, an optical system, a projection mask composed of chip patterns, an alignment system and a substrate covered with photosensitive photoresist. [0003] The immersion lithography system fills a certain liquid in the gap between the projection lens and the substrate, and increases the numerical aperture (NA) of the projection lens by increasing the refractive index (n) of the medium in the gap, thereby improving the resolution of lithography rate and depth of focus. ...

AI Technical Summary

Problems solved by technology

The larger the advancing contact angle, the easier it is for the outside gas to be entrained into the flow field to form bubbles, thereby affecting the uniformity of the flow field and the exposure imaging quality; the smaller the receding contact angle, the easier it is for the boundary liquid to be pulled to the periphery of the flow field, resulting in Liquid leaks, and thus forms a series of defects (such as: water marks)

[0007] The pressure-equalizing air-sealing method commonly used at present cannot adaptively compensate the boundary of the flow field, because a smaller air-sealing pressure will make it easier to leak at the forward contact angle, and a larger air-sealing pressure will increase Possibility of liquid bubble entrainment at receding contact angles, gas-tight optimal pressure changes with high-speed dynamics of flow field boundaries

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