Image sensor for immersion lithography

US11774868B2 · US · B2

Patent metadata
FieldValue
Publication numberUS-11774868-B2
Application numberUS-202017600631-A
CountryUS
Kind codeB2
Filing dateApr 7, 2020
Priority dateApr 16, 2019
Publication dateOct 3, 2023
Grant dateOct 3, 2023

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  1. Title

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  2. Abstract

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  4. Key dates

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  5. First independent claim

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  7. Citations and related patents

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Abstract

Official abstract text for this publication.

An image sensor for immersion lithography, the image sensor including: a grating; an absorber layer on the grating, the absorber layer configured to absorb radiation; and a liquidphobic coating at an upper surface of the image sensor, wherein a protective layer is provided between the absorber layer and the liquidphobic layer, the protective layer being less reactive than the absorber layer to an immersion liquid.

First claim

Opening claim text (preview).

The invention claimed is: 1. An image sensor for immersion lithography, the image sensor comprising: a grating comprising protrusions; an absorber layer on the grating, the absorber layer configured to absorb radiation; and a liquidphobic coating at an upper surface of the image sensor; a protective layer between the absorber layer and the liquidphobic layer, the protective layer being less reactive than the absorber layer to an immersion liquid, and wherein the protective layer has a first thickness perpendicular to a top of the protrusions and a second thickness perpendicular to a side of the protrusions, the first thickness being at least half and at most twice the second thickness. 2. The image sensor of claim 1 , wherein the protective layer is formed of an oxide. 3. The image sensor of claim 1 , wherein the protective layer is formed of an inorganic material. 4. The image sensor of claim 1 , wherein the protective layer is formed of SiO 2 . 5. The image sensor of claim 1 , wherein the protective layer is optically at least semi-transparent. 6. The image sensor of claim 1 , wherein the protective layer comprises a denser sub-layer closer to the absorber layer and a more granular sub-layer closer to the liquidphobic coating. 7. The image sensor of claim 1 , further comprising an adhesion promoter between the protective layer and the liquidphobic coating. 8. A substrate table for immersion lithography, the substrate table comprising the image sensor of claim 1 mounted on it. 9. A lithographic apparatus comprising: the substrate table of claim 8 ; a projection system configured to project a pattern from a patterning device onto a substrate held by the substrate table; and a liquid supply system configured to provide an immersion liquid to a space between the projection system and the substrate. 10. An image sensor for immersion lithography, the image sensor comprising: a grating; an absorber layer on the grating, the absorber layer configured to absorb radiation; and a liquidphobic coating at an upper surface of the image sensor; a protective layer between the absorber layer and the liquidphobic layer, the protective layer being less reactive than the absorber layer to an immersion liquid and the protective layer comprising a denser sub-layer closer to the absorber layer and a more granular sub-layer closer to the liquidphobic coating. 11. The image sensor of claim 10 , wherein the protective layer is formed of an oxide. 12. The image sensor of claim 10 , wherein the protective layer is formed of an inorganic material. 13. The image sensor of claim 10 , further comprising an adhesion promoter between the protective layer and the liquidphobic coating. 14. A substrate table for immersion lithography, the substrate table comprising the image sensor of claim 10 mounted on it. 15. A lithographic apparatus comprising: the substrate table of claim 14 ; a projection system configured to project a pattern from a patterning device onto a substrate held by the substrate table; and a liquid supply system configured to provide an immersion liquid to a space between the projection system and the substrate. 16. An image sensor for immersion lithography, the image sensor comprising: a grating; an absorber layer on the grating, the absorber layer configured to absorb radiation; and a liquidphobic coating at an upper surface of the image sensor; a protective layer between the absorber layer and the liquidphobic layer, the protective layer being less reactive than the absorber layer to an immersion liquid, wherein there is an adhesion promoter between the protective layer and the liquidphobic coating and/or the liquidphobic coating comprises a more adhesive sub-layer of the liquidphobic coating closer to the protective layer and a less adhesive sub-layer of the liquidphobic coating further away from the protective layer. 17. The image sensor of claim 16 , comprising the more adhesive sub-layer of the liquidphobic coating closer to the protective layer and the less adhesive sub-layer of the liquidphobic coating further away from the protective layer. 18. The image sensor of claim 16 , wherein the grating comprises protrusions and wherein the protective layer has a first thickness perpendicular to a top of the protrusions and a second thickness perpendicular to a side of the protrusions, wherein the first thickness is at least half and at most twice the second thickness. 19. A substrate table for immersion lithography, the substrate table comprising the image sensor of claim 16 mounted on it. 20. A lithographic apparatus comprising: the substrate table of claim 19 ; a projection system configured to project a pattern from a patterning device onto a substrate held by the substrate table; and a liquid supply system configured to provide an immersion liquid to a space between the projection system and the substrate.

Assignees

Inventors

Classifications

  • G03F7/7085Primary

    Detection arrangement, e.g. detectors of apparatus alignment possibly mounted on wafers, exposure dose, photo-cleaning flux, stray light, thermal load · CPC title

  • Sputtering · CPC title

  • Treatment with charged particles (C23C14/582 takes precedence) · CPC title

  • Atomic layer deposition [ALD] · CPC title

  • Details of immersion lithography aspects, e.g. exposure media or control of immersion liquid supply (chemical composition of immersion liquids G03F7/2041) · CPC title

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What does patent US11774868B2 cover?
An image sensor for immersion lithography, the image sensor including: a grating; an absorber layer on the grating, the absorber layer configured to absorb radiation; and a liquidphobic coating at an upper surface of the image sensor, wherein a protective layer is provided between the absorber layer and the liquidphobic layer, the protective layer being less reactive than the absorber layer to …
Who is the assignee on this patent?
Asml Netherlands Bv
What technology area does this patent fall under?
Primary CPC classification G03F7/7085. Mapped technology areas include Physics.
When was this patent published?
Publication date Tue Oct 03 2023 00:00:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time) (B2). Legal status and post-grant events are not shown on this page.
What related patents are in patentsdb?
We list 8 related publications on this page (citations in our corpus or others sharing the same primary CPC).