Pre-formed Flexible Transportation Line for Lithographic Apparatus
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional lithographic apparatuses experience position errors due to parasitic stiffness and damping from hoses and wires, which are inhomogeneous and variable, leading to significant disturbance errors, especially in dynamic couplings between moveable parts.
Innovation Solution
The use of pre-formed flexible transportation lines, either in three-dimensional curves or pairs of two-dimensional curves with mirrored orientations, to reduce parasitic stiffness and damping between moveable parts of the apparatus.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If conventional hoses and wires are used to dynamically couple moveable parts, then the apparatus can be assembled and operated, but parasitic stiffness and damping cause position errors and reduce measurement precision
Solution Approach 1:
The transportation lines are pre-formed with specific three-dimensional curves instead of straight lines. This curvature allows the lines to flex and accommodate movements between the first and second parts without generating parasitic stiffness and damping forces, thereby improving position accuracy while maintaining the dynamic coupling functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention transitions from conventional two-dimensional routing of hoses and wires to three-dimensional curved paths. By utilizing the third dimension (vertical space) and creating complex 3D curves, the transportation lines can follow optimal paths that minimize mechanical constraints and parasitic effects during movement.
2Measurement precision
If pre-formed three-dimensional curved transportation lines are used, then parasitic stiffness and damping are reduced, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The transportation lines are pre-formed with their final three-dimensional curved configurations before installation. This preliminary shaping eliminates the need for complex real-time adjustments or active control mechanisms during operation, reducing the overall system complexity while maintaining the precision benefits of the curved geometry.
Data Source
AI summary
A lithographic apparatus includes, in an embodiment, an illumination system configured to condition a radiation beam; a support constructed to support a patterning device, the patterning device being capable of imparting the radiation beam with a pattern in its cross-section to form a patterned radiation beam; a substrate table constructed to hold a substrate; a projection system configured to project the patterned radiation beam onto a target portion of the substrate; and a flexible transportation line extending between a first and second part of the apparatus, the second part moveable with respect to the first part, wherein the line is pre-formed in a three-dimensional curve.