An imaging optical unit for projection lithography has a plurality of mirrors for guiding imaging light from an object field in an object plane into an image field in an image plane along an imaging light beam path. At least two of the mirrors are embodied as GI mirrors. Exactly one stop serves to predefine at least one section of an outer marginal contour of a pupil of the imaging optical unit. The stop is arranged spatially in front of a penultimate mirror in the imaging light beam path. This results in an imaging optical unit that is well defined with regard to its pupil and is optimized for projection lithography.

The technology describes an image or optical system with a five-mirror anastigmat (5MA) with first, second and third mirrors cooperating to form an intermediate image between the third and a fourth mirror to enable longer focal lengths, higher pupil magnifications, the use of smaller mirrors and/or more compact designs that occupy less space.

A pulse stretcher includes a beam splitter splitting pulse laser light into two beams of pulse laser light, first concave mirrors arranged side by side in a predetermined direction, and second concave mirrors arranged side by side in the predetermined direction as having the same number as the first concave mirrors and facing the first concave mirrors, respectively. One beam of pulse laser light split by the beam splitter travels to one first concave mirror among the first concave mirrors and is reflected alternately by the first concave mirrors and the second concave mirrors 12 times or more as even number times to return to the beam splitter. A number of overlapping of the one beam at each of concentration points where at least part of the one beam of pulse laser light overlaps at beam waists of the one beam is two.

A cloaking device includes an object-side, an image-side, an object-side curved cloaking region (CR) boundary having an outward facing mirror surface and an inward facing surface, and an image-side curved CR boundary an outward facing mirror surface and an inward facing surface. A cloaked region is bounded by the inward facing surfaces of the object-side curved CR boundary and the image-side curved CR boundary. At least one exterior boundary with an inward facing mirror surface is spaced apart from the object-side curved CR boundary and the image-side curved CR boundary. Light from an object positioned on the object-side of the cloaking device and obscured by the cloaked region is redirected around the cloaked region to form an image of the object on the image-side of the cloaking device such that the light from the object appears to pass through the CR.

In a method for three-dimensionally measuring a 3D aerial image in the region around an image plane during the imaging of a lithography mask, which is arranged in an object plane, a selectable imaging scale ratio in mutually perpendicular directions (x, y) is taken into account. For this purpose, an electromagnetic wavefront of imaging light is reconstructed after interaction thereof with the lithography mask. An influencing variable that corresponds to the imaging scale ratio is included. Finally, the 3D aerial image measured with the inclusion of the influencing variable is output. This results in a measuring method with which lithography masks that are optimized for being used with an anamorphic projection optical unit during projection exposure can also be measured.

A projection lens of an EUV-lithographic projection exposure system with at least two reflective optical elements each comprising a body and a reflective surface for projecting an object field on a reticle onto an image field on a substrate if the projection lens is exposed with an exposure power of EUV light, wherein the bodies of at least two reflective optical elements comprise a material with a temperature dependent coefficient of thermal expansion which is zero at respective zero cross temperatures, and wherein the absolute value of the difference between the zero cross temperatures is more than 6K.

Described are two mirror scanning projectors employing a collimated laser beam directed to a first mirror that scans in one direction, an optical relay system, and a second mirror that scans in a perpendicular direction from the first mirror to provide two dimensional scanning of the laser beam.

In a method for three-dimensionally measuring a 3D aerial image in the region around an image plane during the imaging of a lithography mask, which is arranged in an object plane, a selectable imaging scale ratio in mutually perpendicular directions (x, y) is taken into account. For this purpose, an electromagnetic wavefront of imaging light is reconstructed after interaction thereof with the lithography mask. An influencing variable that corresponds to the imaging scale ratio is included. Finally, the 3D aerial image measured with the inclusion of the influencing variable is output. This results in a measuring method with which lithography masks that are optimized for being used with an anamorphic projection optical unit during projection exposure can also be measured.

An imaging optical unit for projection lithography has a plurality of mirrors for guiding imaging light from an object field in an object plane into an image field in an image plane along an imaging light beam path. At least two of the mirrors are embodied as GI mirrors. Exactly one stop serves to predefine at least one section of an outer marginal contour of a pupil of the imaging optical unit. The stop is arranged spatially in front of a penultimate mirror in the imaging light beam path. This results in an imaging optical unit that is well defined with regard to its pupil and is optimized for projection lithography.

A projection lens of an EUV-lithographic projection exposure system with at least two reflective optical elements each comprising a body and a reflective surface for projecting an object field on a reticle onto an image field on a substrate if the projection lens is exposed with an exposure power of EUV light, wherein the bodies of at least two reflective optical elements comprise a material with a temperature dependent coefficient of thermal expansion which is zero at respective zero cross temperatures, and wherein the absolute value of the difference between the zero cross temperatures is more than 6K.