Gas bath generator and photolithography equipment

Abstract

The present invention relates to the field of photolithography technology, and provides a gas bath generator and photolithography equipment, wherein the gas bath generator includes a ring body structure and an air outlet reinforcement structure, the ring body structure is provided with a notch, and the ring body structure forms two oppositely arranged ends at the notch; the air outlet reinforcement structure is arranged at both ends, and the air outlet reinforcement structure includes a second air outlet; the ring body structure is used to be arranged around a working area, and a gas flow channel is formed in the ring body structure, and the ring body structure is provided with a plurality of first air outlets distributed along the circumferential direction and connected to the gas flow channel, and the second air outlet is connected to the gas flow channel, and the gas flowing through the first air outlet can form a closed air flow layer distributed around the working area, and the gas flowing through the second air outlet can form a closed air flow layer and a blocked air flow layer that blocks the notch. The gas bath generator and photolithography equipment provided by the present invention well solve the problem of how to reduce the gas pollution and particle pollution of the silicon chip microenvironment in the photolithography equipment.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of photolithography, and in particular to a gas bath generator and photolithography equipment. Background Art

[0002] This section merely provides background information related to the present disclosure and is not necessarily prior art.

[0003] Photolithography is one of the key technologies in the manufacture of extremely large-scale integrated circuits. Whether it is projection lithography, proximity lithography or contact lithography, etc., the requirements of the working environment of the lithography equipment are particularly stringent, mainly reflected in preventing particle contamination and gas contamination in the silicon wafer microenvironment. The particle pollutants and gas pollutants in the lithography equipment will reduce the lithography yield and shorten the life of the optical components.

[0004] In the prior art, particulate pollutants and gaseous pollutants may enter the gas bath generator from between the gas bath generator and the lower shell surface of the exposure device. On the other hand, since the gas bath generator is arranged around key components such as optical elements, masks and silicon wafers, and the key components such as optical elements, masks and silicon wafers therein need to be connected by water pipes, air pipes or electrical wires, the gas bath generator needs to have a notch to facilitate the passage of water pipes, air pipes or electrical wires, which may cause particulate pollutants and gaseous pollutants to enter from the notch of the gas bath generator.

[0005] Therefore, it is necessary to strictly control the gaseous and particulate pollutants in the silicon wafer microenvironment within the lithography equipment. Summary of the invention

[0006] The purpose of the present invention is to at least solve the problem of how to reduce the gas pollution and particle pollution of the silicon wafer microenvironment in the lithography equipment. This purpose is achieved by the following technical solutions:

[0007] The first aspect of the present invention provides an air shower generator, comprising a ring structure and an air outlet reinforcement structure, wherein the ring structure is provided with a notch, and the ring structure forms two oppositely disposed ends at the notch;

[0008] The air outlet reinforcement structure is arranged at the two ends, and the air outlet reinforcement structure includes a second air outlet;

[0009] The ring body structure is used to be arranged around the working area, and a gas flow channel is formed in the ring body structure. The ring body structure is provided with a plurality of first air outlets distributed along the circumferential direction and connected to the gas flow channel. The second air outlet is connected to the gas flow channel. The gas flowing through the first air outlet can form a closed air flow layer distributed around the working area, and the gas flowing through the second air outlet can form the closed air flow layer and a blocking air flow layer that blocks the gap.

[0010] According to the air shower generator of the present invention, the gas flows out through the first air outlet and generates a closed air flow layer distributed around the working area. In addition, the air flows out through the air outlet reinforcement structure and generates a closed air flow layer and a blocked air flow layer that blocks the gap.

[0011] Among them, when the gas bath generator is used for lithography equipment, the gas bath generator is arranged circumferentially around the working area of ​​the lithography equipment, forming a closed airflow layer isolated from the outside world around the working area, so that external particulate pollutants and gaseous pollutants cannot cross the lower shell surface of the gas bath generator and the exposure device to enter the working area; the sealed airflow layer prevents external particulate pollutants and gaseous pollutants from crossing the gap to enter the working area; in summary, the gas bath generator proposed in the present invention effectively reduces the gas and particle pollution in the silicon wafer microenvironment in the lithography equipment.

[0012] In addition, the gas bath generator according to the present invention may also have the following additional technical features:

[0013] In some embodiments of the present invention, the first gas outlet is arranged at the top of the ring structure, and the side wall of the gas bath generator is provided with at least one gas inlet connected to a gas source, and the at least one gas inlet is connected to the gas flow channel.

[0014] In some embodiments of the present invention, the second air outlet is disposed on the top of the air outlet reinforcement structure.

[0015] In some embodiments of the present invention, the air outlet reinforcement structure includes a bottom plate, the bottom plate is arranged on the top surface of the ring structure, and the second air outlet connected to the gas flow channel is provided on the bottom plate.

[0016] In some embodiments of the present invention, the air outlet reinforcement structure further includes a side panel, the side panel is disposed on the top surface of the bottom panel, the side panel is provided with a notch, and the notch faces the cutout.

[0017] In some embodiments of the present invention, the bottom plate includes a first air outlet bottom plate and a second air outlet bottom plate, the first air outlet bottom plate and the second air outlet bottom plate are integrally formed, and the first air outlet bottom plate and the second air outlet bottom plate are both provided with a second air outlet connected to the gas flow channel, and the size of the second air outlet bottom plate is larger than that of the first air outlet bottom plate.

[0018] In some embodiments of the present invention, the ring structure is in the shape of a circular ring.

[0019] The second aspect of the present invention also provides a lithography device, comprising the gas bath generator as described in any of the above items, and also comprising an exposure device, a wafer stage, a silicon wafer stage and a gas supply device, wherein the silicon wafer stage is used to place a silicon wafer, the exposure device, the wafer stage and the silicon wafer stage are arranged in sequence from top to bottom, and the exposure device and the silicon wafer stage form a working area, the gas bath generator is arranged around the working area, and the gas supply device is connected to the gas flow channel.

[0020] In some embodiments of the present invention, the first gas outlet and the second gas outlet are both connected to the gas flow channel, and the gas flowing through the first gas outlet and the second gas outlet can form a first laminar gas flow flowing upward;

[0021] The first air outlet and the second air outlet are both located below the lower shell surface of the exposure device. The first laminar airflow hits the lower shell surface of the exposure device to form a second laminar airflow flowing from the inside to the outside. The first laminar airflow and the second laminar airflow form a closed airflow layer surrounding the working area between the air bath generator and the exposure device.

[0022] In some embodiments of the present invention, the notch of the air outlet reinforcement structure faces the gap, and the air outlet reinforcement structure includes a second air outlet. The gas flowing through the second air outlet can form a third laminar airflow flowing toward the gap, and the two third laminar airflows collide to form a blocking airflow layer flowing from the inside to the outside.

[0023] According to the lithography equipment of the present invention, first, the clean gas flows through the air inlet, the gas flow channel, the first air outlet (and the second air outlet) in sequence to generate a plurality of circles of first laminar airflow that flows upward, uniformly and stably. The first laminar airflow hits the bottom surface of the exposure device in the exposure area to form a second laminar airflow that flows from the inside to the outside, uniformly and stably. Due to the effects of the uniform and stable first laminar airflow and the uniform and stable second laminar airflow, the first laminar airflow and the second laminar airflow constitute a closed and constant high-pressure space, and external particulate pollutants and gaseous pollutants cannot cross the gas bath generator and the lower shell surface of the exposure device and enter the silicon wafer microenvironment.

[0024] In addition, the clean gas flows through the air inlet, the gas flow channel, the second air outlet, and the notch in sequence to generate several circles of uniform and stable third laminar airflow flowing toward the notch. The two third laminar airflows collide to form a blocked airflow layer flowing from the inside to the outside, and external particulate pollutants and gaseous pollutants cannot cross the notch to enter the silicon wafer microenvironment. In summary, the lithography equipment proposed in the present invention greatly reduces the gas and particle pollution in the silicon wafer microenvironment in the lithography equipment. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025] Various other advantages and benefits will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art by reading the detailed description of the preferred embodiments below. The accompanying drawings are only for the purpose of illustrating the preferred embodiments and are not to be considered as limiting the present invention. Moreover, the same reference numerals are used throughout the accompanying drawings to represent the same components. In the accompanying drawings:

[0026] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the structure of a lithography device according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0027] Figure 2 Schematically shows a top view of a gas bath generator according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0028] Figure 3 The schematic diagram of the installation of the air outlet reinforcement structure on the ring structure according to the embodiment of the present invention is schematically shown.

[0029] The reference numerals are as follows:

[0030] 1 is a gas bath generator;

[0031] 11 is a ring structure, 111 is a notch, 112 is an air inlet, 113 is a first air outlet, and 114 is a mounting ear;

[0032] 12 is an air outlet reinforcement structure, 121 is a bottom plate, 1211 is a first air outlet bottom plate, 1212 is a second air outlet bottom plate, and 122 is a side plate;

[0033] 2 is an exposure device, 21 is a projection objective lens, and 22 is a lower shell surface;

[0034] 3 is a silicon wafer; 4 is a wafer stage; 5 is a silicon wafer stage; 6 is a gas supply device;

[0035] 7 is the first laminar airflow; 8 is the second laminar airflow; 9 is the third laminar airflow. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0036] The exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Although the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure are shown in the accompanying drawings, it should be understood that the present disclosure can be implemented in various forms and should not be limited by the embodiments described herein. On the contrary, these embodiments are provided in order to enable a more thorough understanding of the present disclosure and to fully convey the scope of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art.

[0037] It should be understood that the terms used herein are only for the purpose of describing specific example embodiments and are not intended to be limiting. Unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the singular forms "one", "an" and "said" as used herein may also be meant to include plural forms. The terms "include", "comprise", "contain", and "have" are inclusive, and therefore specify the existence of stated features, steps, operations, elements and / or parts, but do not exclude the existence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, parts, and / or combinations thereof. The method steps, processes, and operations described herein are not interpreted as necessarily requiring them to be performed in the specific order described or illustrated, unless the execution order is clearly indicated. It should also be understood that additional or alternative steps may be used.

[0038] Although the terms first, second, third, etc. can be used in the text to describe multiple elements, components, regions, layers and / or sections, these elements, components, regions, layers and / or sections should not be limited by these terms. These terms can only be used to distinguish an element, component, region, layer or section from another region, layer or section. Unless the context clearly indicates, terms such as "first", "second" and other numerical terms do not imply order or sequence when used in the text. Therefore, the first element, component, region, layer or section discussed below can be referred to as the second element, component, region, layer or section without departing from the teaching of the example embodiments.

[0039] For ease of description, spatial relative terms may be used herein to describe the relationship of one element or feature relative to another element or feature as shown in the figure, such as "inside", "outside", "inner side", "outer side", "below", "below", "above", "above", etc. Such spatial relative terms are intended to include different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figure. For example, if the device in the figure is turned over, then the elements described as "below other elements or features" or "below other elements or features" will subsequently be oriented as "above other elements or features" or "above other elements or features". Therefore, the example term "below..." can include both upper and lower orientations. The device can be oriented otherwise (rotated 90 degrees or in other directions) and the spatial relative descriptors used in the text are interpreted accordingly.

[0040] See also Figure 1-2As shown, the first aspect of the present invention provides an air shower generator 1, which includes an air outlet reinforcement structure 12 and a ring structure 11, the ring structure 11 is provided with a notch 111, and the ring structure 11 forms two oppositely arranged ends at the notch 111; the air outlet reinforcement structure 12 is arranged on the ring structure 11 and is located at the two ends of the notch 111, and the air outlet reinforcement structure 12 includes a second air outlet (not shown in the figure); the ring structure 11 is used to be arranged around the working area, and the inside of the ring structure 11 forms a gas flow channel (not shown in the figure) As shown), the ring structure 11 is provided with a plurality of first air outlets 113 distributed along the circumferential direction and connected to the gas flow channel, the second air outlet is connected to the gas flow channel, the gas flowing through the first air outlet 113 can form a closed air flow layer distributed around the working area, and the more detailed closed air flow layer is the first laminar airflow 7 and the second laminar airflow 8, and the gas flowing through the second air outlet can form the closed airflow layer and the blocked airflow layer of the gap 111, and the more detailed blocked airflow layer is the third laminar airflow 9.

[0041] It should be noted that the blocking airflow layer that blocks the notch 111 can not only block part of the notch 111 , but also block the space formed between the top of the notch 111 and the lower shell surface 22 of the exposure device 2 .

[0042] According to the gas bath generator 1 of the present invention, the gas flows out through the first gas outlet 113 and generates a closed airflow layer distributed around the working area. In addition, the gas flows out through the air outlet reinforcement structure 12 and generates a closed airflow layer and a blocked airflow layer that blocks the notch 111. Wherein, when the gas bath generator 1 is used for a photolithography device, the gas bath generator 1 is arranged circumferentially around the working area of ​​the photolithography device, and a closed airflow layer isolated from the outside is formed around the working area, so that external particle pollutants and gaseous pollutants cannot enter the working area across the gas bath generator 1 and the lower shell surface 22 of the exposure device 2; the blocked airflow layer prevents external particle pollutants and gaseous pollutants from entering the working area across the notch 111; in summary, the gas bath generator proposed by the present invention effectively reduces the gas and particle pollution in the microenvironment of the silicon wafer in the photolithography device.

[0043] In some embodiments of the present invention, the first gas outlet 113 is arranged at the top of the ring structure 11 and is located at the bottom of the lower shell surface 22 of the exposure device 2, so that the gas flows out from the first gas outlet 113 and generates an upward-flowing first laminar airflow 7. The first laminar airflow 7 hits the lower shell surface 22 of the exposure device 2 to form a second laminar airflow 8 flowing from the inside to the outside. The first laminar airflow 7 and the second laminar airflow 8 form a closed airflow layer surrounding the working area between the gas bath generator 1 and the exposure device 2, so that external particulate pollutants and gaseous pollutants cannot cross the gas bath generator 1 and the lower shell surface 22 of the exposure device 2 and enter the working area.

[0044] See also Figure 2 As shown, the side wall of the gas bath generator 1 is provided with at least one air inlet 112 connected to the gas source, and the at least one air inlet 112 is connected to the gas flow channel. The air flow enters the gas flow channel of the gas bath generator 1 through the air inlet 112, and then flows out through the first air outlet 113 and the air outlet reinforcement structure 12, thereby achieving the effect of reducing the gas and particle contamination of the silicon wafer microenvironment in the lithography equipment.

[0045] Further reading Figure 2 As shown, the outer side surface of the air bath generator 1 is also provided with a mounting ear 114; the air bath generator 1 is installed on the top surface of the silicon wafer stage 5 or the top surface of the wafer support table 4 through the mounting ear 114. It is worth noting that the air bath generator 1 can be installed on the top surface of the silicon wafer stage 5 or the top surface of the wafer support table 4, and the air bath generator 1 and the silicon wafer stage 5 or the wafer support table 4 can also be set to be bolt fixed, clamped fixed or other methods, as long as the air bath generator 1 can be installed firmly.

[0046] See also Figure 2 As shown, specifically, there are two air outlet reinforcement structures 12, which are arranged on the ring structure 11 and located at both ends of the notch 111. A second air outlet (not shown in the figure) connected to the gas flow channel is arranged on the air outlet reinforcement structure 12, and the second air outlet is arranged at the top of the air outlet reinforcement structure 12 and located at the bottom of the lower shell surface 22 of the exposure device 2. On the one hand, the gas flows out from the second air outlet and generates a first laminar airflow 7 flowing upward. The first laminar airflow 7 hits the lower shell surface 22 of the exposure device 2 to form a second laminar airflow 8 flowing from the inside to the outside. The first laminar airflow 7 and the second laminar airflow 8 are connected between the air bath generator 1 and the exposure device 2. A closed airflow layer is formed around the working area between the devices 2, so that external particulate pollutants and gaseous pollutants cannot cross the gas bath generator 1 and the lower shell surface 22 of the exposure device 2 to enter the working area; on the other hand, it is used for the air to flow out through the second air outlet and generate a blocked airflow layer for blocking the gap 111. Specifically, the clean gas flows through the air inlet 112, the gas flow channel, and the second air outlet in sequence to generate a plurality of circles of uniform and stable third laminar airflows 9 flowing toward the gap. The two third laminar airflows 9 collide to form a blocked airflow layer flowing from the inside to the outside, so that external particulate pollutants and gaseous pollutants cannot cross the gap 111 to enter the silicon wafer microenvironment.

[0047] Further reading Figure 3As shown, the air outlet reinforcement structure 12 includes a bottom plate 121, which is arranged on the top surface of the ring structure 11 and at the bottom of the lower shell 22 of the exposure device 2, and the bottom plate 121 is provided with a second air outlet (not shown in the figure) connected to the gas flow channel. Specifically, the gas flows out from the second air outlet and generates an upward-flowing first laminar airflow 7, and the first laminar airflow 7 hits the lower shell 22 of the exposure device 2 to form a second laminar airflow 8 flowing from the inside to the outside. The first laminar airflow 7 and the second laminar airflow 88 form a closed airflow layer surrounding the working area between the air bath generator 1 and the exposure device 2, so that external particulate pollutants and gaseous pollutants cannot cross the air bath generator 1 and the lower shell 22 of the exposure device 2 to enter the working area.

[0048] Furthermore, the air outlet reinforcement structure 12 also includes a side panel, which is arranged on the top surface of the base plate, and the side panel is provided with a notch, and the notch faces the opening. When the gas flows out from the second air outlet of the base plate 121 and flows upward, under the blocking effect of the lower shell surface 22 of the exposure device 2, a part of the gas flows through the notch toward the opening 111 to form a uniform and stable number of circles of third laminar airflow 9. The two third laminar airflows 9 collide to form a blocked airflow layer flowing from the inside to the outside, and external particulate pollutants and gaseous pollutants cannot cross the notch 111 and enter the silicon wafer microenvironment.

[0049] Preferably, the bottom plate 121 is a square plate, wherein the air outlet reinforcement structure 12 further includes three side plates 122, which are arranged on the top surface of the bottom plate 121, and the three side plates 122 are connected to block the three sides of the air outlet reinforcement structure 12, and the other side of the air outlet reinforcement structure 12 faces the notch 111, that is, the side of the bottom plate 121 of the air outlet reinforcement structure 12 where no side plate is arranged is a notch, and faces the notch 111; since the air outlet reinforcement structure 12 includes a bottom plate 121 and three side plates 122, and the bottom plate 121 is located at the exposure device The bottom of the lower shell surface 22 of the exposure device 2 is equivalent to that the five surfaces of the air outlet reinforcement structure 12 are blocked, leaving only a gap toward the notch 111. When the gas flows out from the second air outlet of the bottom plate 121 and flows upward, under the blocking effect of the three side plates 122 and the lower shell surface 22 of the exposure device 2, a part of the gas flows toward the notch 111 to form a uniform and stable number of circles of the third laminar airflow 9. The two third laminar airflows 9 collide to form a blocking airflow layer flowing from the inside to the outside, and the external particulate pollutants and gaseous pollutants cannot cross the notch 111 and enter the silicon wafer microenvironment.

[0050] See also Figure 3As shown, in some embodiments of the present invention, the bottom plate 121 includes a first air outlet bottom plate 1211 and a second air outlet bottom plate 1212, the first air outlet bottom plate 1211 and the second air outlet bottom plate 1212 are integrally formed, and the first air outlet bottom plate 1211 and the second air outlet bottom plate 1212 are both provided with a second air outlet connected to the gas flow channel, and the size of the second air outlet bottom plate 1212 is larger than that of the first air outlet bottom plate 1211. The effect of setting the second air outlet bottom plate 1212 with a larger size is: increasing the air outlet area of ​​the air outlet reinforcement structure 12, thereby increasing the air outlet volume; when the first laminar airflow 7 hits the lower shell surface 22 of the exposure device 2, due to the large air outlet volume of the air outlet reinforcement structure 12, a larger part of the gas turns to flow from the notch to the direction of the notch 111 and forms a third laminar airflow 9, and the two third laminar airflows 9 collide to form a blocking airflow layer flowing from the inside to the outside.

[0051] It is worth noting that the opening diameters and the opening porosity of the first air outlet bottom plate 1211 and the second air outlet bottom plate 1212 are consistent, and no special restrictions are imposed here.

[0052] In some embodiments of the present invention, the ring structure 11 may be in the shape of a circular ring or a rectangular ring.

[0053] See also Figure 1-Figure 3 As shown, the second aspect of the present invention further provides a lithography device, including the gas bath generator 1 as described above; also including an exposure device 2, a wafer stage 4, a silicon wafer stage 5 and a gas supply device 6, the silicon wafer stage 5 is used to place the silicon wafer 3, the exposure device 2, the wafer stage 4 and the silicon wafer stage 5 are arranged in sequence from top to bottom, and the exposure device 2 and the silicon wafer stage 4 form a working area, the gas bath generator 1 is arranged around the working area, and the gas supply device 6 is connected to the gas flow channel of the gas bath generator 1.

[0054] Specifically, the gas supply device 6 is used to provide clean working gas and pre-treat the working gas, including but not limited to gas purification, particle filtration, flow control and temperature control type pre-treatment functions.

[0055] In some embodiments of the present invention, the working gas in the gas supply device 6 is preferably nitrogen, followed by dry air or other inert gases; the gas supply device also includes a purifier, a flow controller and a temperature control device, wherein the purifier can filter out particles in the working gas and absorb polluting gases such as water and hydrocarbons to prevent the polluting gases from possibly contaminating the silicon wafer; the flow controller is used to accurately control the gas flow rate to provide a basis for the uniformity and stability of the closed air flow layer, and the temperature control device performs constant temperature control on the working gas to ensure that the working gas entering the gas bath generator 1 has a constant temperature. It is worth noting that the structures of the purifier, flow controller and temperature control device are all prior art in the field and will not be described in detail here.

[0056] Specifically, the exposure device 2 mainly generates a light beam with a desired pattern and performs pattern processing on the surface of the silicon wafer 3. Currently, photolithography equipment can be divided into three categories: proximity lithography, contact lithography, direct writing lithography, and projection lithography. Proximity and contact lithography replicate the pattern on the mask by infinitely approaching; projection lithography uses a projection lens 21 to project the structure on the mask onto the substrate surface; while direct writing focuses the light beam to a point and realizes arbitrary pattern processing by moving the workpiece stage or lens scanning. Optical projection lithography has always been the mainstream lithography technology for integrated circuits due to its high efficiency and non-destructive advantages. Therefore, for projection lithography, the bottom of the exposure device 2 is the projection lens 21; and for proximity and contact lithography, the bottom of the exposure device 2 is the mask.

[0057] Similar to the gas bath generator provided by the present invention, the first gas outlet 113 and the second gas outlet are both connected to the gas flow channel, and the gas flowing through the first gas outlet 113 and the second gas outlet can form a first laminar airflow 7 flowing upward; and the first gas outlet 113 and the second gas outlet are both located below the lower shell surface 22 of the exposure device 2, and the first laminar airflow 7 hits the lower shell surface 22 of the exposure device 2 to form a second laminar airflow 8 flowing from the inside to the outside, and the first laminar airflow 7 and the second laminar airflow 8 form a closed airflow layer surrounding the working area between the gas bath generator 1 and the exposure device 2.

[0058] At the same time, the notch of the air outlet reinforcement structure 12 faces the gap 111, and the air outlet reinforcement structure 12 includes a second air outlet. The gas flows out through the second air outlet of the gas bath generator 1 and generates a third laminar airflow 9 flowing toward the gap 111. The two third laminar airflows 9 collide to form a blocking airflow layer flowing from the inside to the outside.

[0059] In summary, according to the lithography equipment of the present invention, first, the clean gas flows through the air inlet 112, the gas flow channel, the first air outlet 113 (and the second air outlet) in sequence to generate a plurality of circles of first laminar airflow 7 that flows upward, uniformly and stably. The first laminar airflow 7 hits the bottom surface 22 of the exposure device 2 in the exposure area to form a second laminar airflow 8 that flows from the inside to the outside, uniformly and stably. Due to the effects of the uniform and stable first laminar airflow 7 and the uniform and stable second laminar airflow 8, the first laminar airflow 7 and the second laminar airflow 8 constitute a closed and constant high-pressure space, and external particulate pollutants and gaseous pollutants cannot cross the gas bath generator 1 and the lower shell surface 22 of the exposure device 2 and enter the silicon wafer microenvironment.

[0060] In addition, the clean gas flows through the air inlet 112, the gas flow channel, the second air outlet, and the notch in sequence to generate several circles of uniform and stable third laminar airflow 9 flowing toward the notch. The two third laminar airflows 9 collide to form a blocked airflow layer flowing from the inside to the outside, and external particulate pollutants and gaseous pollutants cannot cross the notch 111 and enter the silicon wafer microenvironment. In summary, the lithography equipment proposed in the present invention greatly reduces the gas and particle pollution in the silicon wafer microenvironment in the lithography equipment.

[0061] It should also be noted that the blocking airflow layer that blocks the notch 111 can not only block part of the notch 111 , but also block the space formed between the top of the notch 111 and the lower shell surface 22 of the exposure device 2 .

[0062] The above is only a preferred specific embodiment of the present invention, but the protection scope of the present invention is not limited thereto. Any changes or substitutions that can be easily thought of by a person skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed by the present invention should be included in the protection scope of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention shall be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A gas bath generator, characterized in that: It comprises a ring structure and an air outlet reinforcement structure, wherein the ring structure is provided with a notch, and the ring structure forms two oppositely arranged ends at the notch; The air outlet reinforcement structure is arranged at the two ends, and the air outlet reinforcement structure includes a second air outlet; The ring body structure is used to be arranged around the working area, and a gas flow channel is formed in the ring body structure. The ring body structure is provided with a plurality of first air outlets distributed along the circumferential direction and connected to the gas flow channel. The second air outlet is connected to the gas flow channel. The gas flowing through the first air outlet can form a closed air flow layer distributed around the working area, and the gas flowing through the second air outlet can form the closed air flow layer and a blocking air flow layer that blocks the gap.

2. The gas bath generator according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first gas outlet is arranged at the top of the ring structure, and the side wall of the gas bath generator is provided with at least one gas inlet connected to a gas source, and the at least one gas inlet is connected to the gas flow channel.

3. The gas bath generator according to claim 1, characterized in that: The second air outlet is arranged at the top of the air outlet reinforcement structure.

4. The gas bath generator according to claim 3, characterized in that: The air outlet reinforcement structure comprises a bottom plate, the bottom plate is arranged on the top surface of the ring structure, and the second air outlet communicated with the gas flow channel is arranged on the bottom plate.

5. The gas bath generator according to claim 4, characterized in that: The air outlet reinforcement structure also includes a side plate, which is arranged on the top surface of the bottom plate. The side plate is provided with a notch, and the notch faces the cutout.

6. The gas bath generator according to claim 4, characterized in that: The bottom plate includes a first air outlet bottom plate and a second air outlet bottom plate, the first air outlet bottom plate and the second air outlet bottom plate are integrally formed, both the first air outlet bottom plate and the second air outlet bottom plate are provided with a second air outlet connected to the gas flow channel, and the size of the second air outlet bottom plate is larger than that of the first air outlet bottom plate.

7. The gas bath generator according to claim 4, characterized in that: The ring structure is in a circular ring shape.

8. A lithography apparatus, characterized in that: The invention comprises the gas bath generator according to any one of claims 1 to 7, further comprising: An exposure device, a wafer stage, a silicon wafer stage and a gas supply device, wherein the silicon wafer stage is used to place a silicon wafer, the exposure device, the wafer stage and the silicon wafer stage are arranged sequentially from top to bottom, and the exposure device and the silicon wafer stage form a working area, the gas bath generator is arranged around the working area, and the gas supply device is connected to the gas flow channel.

9. The lithographic apparatus according to claim 8, characterized in that The first gas outlet and the second gas outlet are both connected to the gas flow channel, and the gas flowing through the first gas outlet and the second gas outlet can form a first laminar gas flow flowing upward; The first air outlet and the second air outlet are both located below the lower shell surface of the exposure device. The first laminar airflow hits the lower shell surface of the exposure device to form a second laminar airflow flowing from the inside to the outside. The first laminar airflow and the second laminar airflow form a closed airflow layer surrounding the working area between the air bath generator and the exposure device.

10. The lithographic apparatus according to claim 9, characterized in that The notch of the air outlet reinforcement structure faces the gap, and the air outlet reinforcement structure includes a second air outlet. The gas flowing through the second air outlet can form a third laminar airflow flowing toward the gap. The two third laminar airflows collide to form a blocking airflow layer flowing from the inside to the outside.

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