An exposure apparatus includes a light source, an illuminating member, a projecting member, a stage, an inspecting member, and an information processing member. The light source is configured to provide a light in accordance with a pulse event generation (PEG) representing a period of light radiation. The illuminating member is configured to change the light into point lights. The projecting member is configured to project the point lights according to a photoresist shape extending in various directions. The point lights are projected on the stage. The inspecting member is configured to inspect a photoresist pattern formed by the projected point lights. The information processing member is configured to analyze different photoresist patterns corresponding to different PEGs to select one PEG from the different PEGs. The one PEG being associated with a minimum error in the various directions.

The present disclosure provides a focus metrology method and photolithography method and system. The focus metrology method includes recognizing at least one relevant region and at least one irrelevant region on a workpiece surface, measuring a height of the relevant region and determining a focal length for an exposure process based on the measured height of the relevant region.

A projection objective of a microlithographic projection exposure apparatus contains a plurality of optical elements arranged in N>2 successive sections A.sub.1 to A.sub.N of the projection objective which are separated from one another by pupil planes or intermediate image planes. According to the invention, in order to correct a wavefront deformation, at least two optical elements each have an optically active surface locally reprocessed aspherically. A first optical element is in this case arranged in one section A.sub.j, j=1 . . . N and a second optical element is arranged in another section A.sub.k, k=1 . . . N, the magnitude difference |kj| being an odd number.

A calibration apparatus is provided. The calibration apparatus includes a wafer carrier configured to support a substrate with a patterned layer. The patterned layer includes a first exposure area and remaining exposure areas, and each of the first and the remaining exposure areas includes a first checking mark. The calibration apparatus also includes a measurement device configured to obtain a first exposure value of the first checking mark of the first exposure area by measuring the first checking mark of the first exposure area. The calibration apparatus also includes a processing module configured to calculate first calculated values of the first checking marks of the remaining exposure areas according to the first exposure value and a standard file. The illumination device is adjusted by an adjustment device of the lithography apparatus according to the first calculated values during a lithography process.

The invention relates to a method for improving the imaging properties of a micro lithography projection objective, wherein the projection objective has a plurality of lenses between an object plane and an image plane, a first lens of the plurality of lenses being assigned a first manipulator for actively deforming the lens, the first lens being deformed for at least partially correcting an aberration, at least one second lens of the plurality of lenses furthermore being assigned at least one second manipulator, and the second lens being deformed in addition to the first lens. Furthermore, a method is described for selecting at least one lens of a plurality of lenses of a projection objective as actively deformable element, and a projection objective.

A method and system for adjusting exposure intensity to reduce unwanted lithographic effects is disclosed. In some exemplary embodiments, the method of photolithography includes receiving a mask and a workpiece. An orientation of an illumination pattern relative to the mask is determined, and an intensity profile of the illumination pattern is adjusted according to the orientation. The mask is exposed to radiation according to the illumination pattern and the intensity profile. Radiation resulting from the exposing of the mask is utilized to expose the workpiece. In some such embodiments, the intensity profile includes an intensity that varies across an illuminated region of the illumination pattern.

A mirror including a substrate and a reflective coating that includes a first group of layers and a second group of layers arranged between the substrate and the first group of layers. Both the first and second groups of layers include a plurality of alternating first material layers and second material layers, arranged one above another. The refractive index of the first material for radiation in the range of 5-30 nm is greater than the refractive index of the second material in that wavelength range. The first group of layers is configured to have a number of layers that is greater than 20, such that, upon irradiation with radiation having a wavelength in the range of 5-30 nm, less than 20% of the radiation reaches the second group of layers, which has a layer thickness variation for correcting the surface form of the mirror.

A method for configuring an illumination source of a lithographic apparatus, the method including dividing the illumination source into pixel groups, each pixel group including one or more illumination source points in a pupil plane of the illumination source; changing a polarization state of each pixel group and determining an incremental effect on each of the plurality of critical dimensions resulting from the change of polarization state; calculating a first plurality of sensitivity coefficients for each of the plurality of critical dimensions using the determined incremental effects; selecting an initial illumination source; iteratively calculating a lithographic metric as a result of a change of polarization state using the calculated first plurality of sensitivity coefficients, the change of the polarization state of the pixel group in the initial illumination source creating a modified illumination source; and adjusting the initial illumination source based on the iterative results of calculations.

A target object has an upper surface including a first surface and a second surface located below the first surface. A method of focusing an optical system includes: measuring a surface position of the first surface; measuring a surface position of the second surface; obtaining, based on a measurement results of the surface position of the first surface, an in-focus condition in which the optical system is focused on the first surface; obtaining information about a step amount between the first surface and the second surface based on the measurement results of the surface positions of the first surface and the second surface; and focusing the optical system on the second surface based on the in-focus condition and the information about the step amount.

Disclosed is a light source optimizing method wherein: a light source shape obtained as the result of SMO is set as a target, the SMO being an optimizing calculation method for optimizing a mask pattern and illumination light source, a spatial light modulator is controlled such that a deviation from the target is within an acceptable range, and the shape of the illumination light source is set; the image of the pattern obtained as the results of the SMO is formed on a wafer, using illumination light emitted from the illumination light source having the set light source shape, an OPE is evaluated as image-forming performance using the detection results obtained by detecting the image of the pattern thus formed; and the light source shape is optimized.