Lithographic apparatus and method of cleaning a surface of an immersion lithographic apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9289802-B2
Application number	US-31461108-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 12, 2008
Priority date	Dec 18, 2007
Publication date	Mar 22, 2016
Grant date	Mar 22, 2016

Abstract

A method of cleaning a lithography apparatus using an aerosol spray is described. The spray from the aerosol is contained in a space.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A lithography apparatus, comprising:
an aerosol spray orifice configured to direct an aerosol spray of solid or liquid particles suspended in gas at a surface to be cleaned; and
an outlet configured to face the surface and exhaust at least part of the aerosol spray, a first portion of the aerosol spray orifice located at a first side of the outlet and a second portion of the aerosol spray orifice located at a second side, opposite the first side, of the outlet such that the outlet exhausts the at least part of the aerosol spray from the first and second portions.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising an under pressure source to remove gas which has exited the aerosol spray orifice.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the under pressure source is also configured to remove a liquid and/or a solid which has exited the aerosol spray orifice.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the aerosol spray orifice is situated in the apparatus such that cleaning of the surface can be performed in-line.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the surface is the surface of a substrate table, or of a barrier member configured to at least partly confine fluid to a space between a projection system and a substrate and/or a substrate table.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a confinement structure configured to at least partly confine matter exiting the aerosol spray orifice to a space.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 , wherein the confinement structure includes a gas orifice to pass gas into and out of the space.

8. The apparatus of claim 7 , further comprising a regulator configured to regulate gas flow in/out of the gas orifice.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 , further comprising a controller to control the regulator to control a pressure in the space.

10. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the aerosol spray orifice is defined in a surface of a substrate table.

11. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the aerosol spray orifice is defined in a bottom surface of a barrier member, wherein the barrier member is configured to at least partly confine fluid to a space between a projection system and a substrate and/or a substrate table.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the aerosol spray orifice is also an outlet for gas for use in containing fluid in the space during imaging.

13. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the aerosol spray orifice is an outlet of a gas knife.

14. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the aerosol spray orifice is constructed and arranged to direct the spray with a direction with a component towards a perpendicular of a surface in which the outlet is defined.

15. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the surface is surrounded by a barrier member, which barrier member is configured to form a seal with an area surrounding the surface being cleaned.

16. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the barrier member is configured to supply liquid to a space to which matter exiting the aerosol spray orifice is substantially confined.

17. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the seal is a contactless seal and is at least partly formed by a gas flow.

18. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the seal is a contactless seal and is at least partly formed by an under pressure source removing liquid from between the barrier member and the area surrounding the surface being cleaned.

19. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the barrier member encloses a space above the surface being cleaned.

20. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the aerosol spray orifice and/or surface are moveable relative to one another.

21. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the surface is located in a confined space.

22. The apparatus of claim 1 , configured to supply a liquid to a space between a projection system and a substrate and/or substrate table.

23. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a gas source to supply a gas to the aerosol spray orifice, and a liquid and/or solid source, separate from the gas source, to provide a liquid and/or a solid to the aerosol spray orifice to form the aerosol spray of particles of the solid or liquid suspended in the gas.

24. A lithography apparatus comprising:
an aerosol spray device configured to spray an aerosol of solid or liquid particles suspended in gas onto a surface to be cleaned;
a confinement system configured to at least partly confine the aerosol to a space, the confinement system comprising an outlet configured to face the surface and exhaust at least part of the aerosol spray, a first portion of the aerosol spray orifice located at a first side of the outlet and a second portion of the aerosol spray orifice located at a second side, opposite the first side, of the outlet such that the outlet exhausts the at least part of the aerosol spray from the first and second portions; and
an extractor configured to remove, from the space, matter exiting the aerosol spray device.

25. The apparatus of claim 24 , wherein the confinement system comprises a barrier wall.

26. The apparatus of claim 24 , wherein the confinement system is configured to use a gas flow to confine aerosol to the space.

27. The apparatus of claim 24 , configured to supply a liquid to a space between a projection system and a substrate and/or substrate table.

28. A method of cleaning a surface of a lithographic apparatus, the method comprising:
directing an aerosol spray of solid or liquid particles suspended in gas at the surface using an aerosol spray orifice; and
exhausting at least part of the aerosol spray using an outlet facing the surface, wherein a first portion of the aerosol spray orifice is located at a first side of the outlet, a second portion of the aerosol spray orifice is located at a second side, opposite the first side, of the outlet and the outlet exhausts the at least part of the aerosol spray from the first and second portions.

29. The method of claim 28 , further comprising removing a liquid or a solid introduced by the aerosol from the surface.

30. The method of claim 28 , wherein gas and liquid and/or solid from the aerosol is substantially confined to and removed from a space.

31. The method of claim 30 , wherein the gas and liquid and/or solid is confined, at least partly, by use of a confinement structure.

32. The method of claim 30 , wherein the gas and liquid and/or solid is confined, at least partly, by a barrier member which at least partly surrounds the surface and which forms a contactless seal between itself and an area surrounding the surface being cleaned.

33. The method of claim 28 , wherein the aerosol is applied by a gas knife which forms part of a seal between a barrier member and a substrate and/or substrate table, which barrier member is for at least partly containing immersion fluid in a space between a final element of a projection system and the substrate and/or substrate table.

34. The method of claim 28 , wherein the surface is located in a confined space.

35. The method of claim 28 , further comprising supplying a liquid to a space between a projection system of the lithographic apparatus and a substrate and/or substrate table.

36. The method of claim 28 , further comprising supplying a gas to the aerosol spray device, and providing a liq

Assignees

• De Jong Anthonius Martinus Cornelis Petrus
• Jansen Hans
• Vugts Josephus Cornelius Johannes Antonius
• Van Der Donck Jacques Cor Johan
• Van Den Dool Teunis Cornelis
• Oosterhuis Gerrit
• Asml Netherlands Bv

Inventors

• De Jong Anthonius Martinus Cornelis Petrus
• Jansen Hans
• Vugts Josephus Cornelius Johannes Antonius
• Van Der Donck Jacques Cor Johan
• Van Den Dool Teunis Cornelis
• Oosterhuis Gerrit

Classifications

• G03F7/70341

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

• B08B3/02 Primary

  Cleaning by the force of jets or sprays · CPC title

• B08B5/02

  Cleaning by the force of jets, e.g. blowing-out cavities {(airguns or nozzles per se B05B1/005)} · CPC title

• G03F7/70925

  Cleaning, i.e. actively freeing apparatus from pollutants, e.g. using plasma cleaning · CPC title