An exposure apparatus 10 includes an optical pickup 12 configured to emit laser light and being capable of adjusting the focus of the laser light, a control computing unit 16 configured to adjust the focus of the laser light, an auxiliary stage 21 having the light source unit 12 set thereon, the position of the auxiliary stage 21 being adjustable in the direction toward the master 1, an auxiliary stage control unit 25 configured to control the position of the auxiliary stage 21, wherein the optical pickup 12 includes an object lens 124 configured to direct the laser light to the master 1, a VCM actuator 125 configured to displace the object lens 124 in accordance with a drive current, and the auxiliary stage control unit 25 controls the position of the auxiliary stage 21 in accordance with the drive current for the VCM actuator 125.

An apparatus includes a developing tank, and the developing tank has a sidewall and a bottom. A fluid manifold is adjacent the bottom of the developing tank. The fluid manifold includes a plurality of holes and a plurality of valves. Developer and rinsing fluid flow through the plurality of holes. Each of the plurality of the valves corresponds to a different hole of the plurality of holes, and the plurality of valves allow the developer and the rinsing fluid to flow through the holes when open and prevent the developer and the flowing liquid from flowing through the holes when closed. The developer flows through a developer inlet to the fluid manifold. The rinsing fluid flows through a rinsing fluid inlet to the fluid manifold. A controller is configured to individually control opening and closing of each of the plurality of valves.

A method of forming a pattern in a photoresist includes forming a photoresist layer over a substrate, and selectively exposing the photoresist layer to actinic radiation to form a latent pattern. The latent pattern is developed by applying a developer composition to the selectively exposed photoresist layer to form a pattern. The developer composition includes a first solvent having Hansen solubility parameters of 15<.sub.d<25, 10<.sub.p<25, and 6<.sub.h<30; an acid having an acid dissociation constant, pKa, of 15<pKa<5, or a base having a pKa of 40>pKa>9.5; and a second solvent having a dielectric constant greater than 18. The first solvent and the second solvent are different solvents.

The present application relates to a developing apparatus. The developing apparatus comprises a housing; a wafer support disposed within the housing and for holding a wafer; a semipermeable diaphragm disposed within the housing and separating the housing into an upper housing defining an upper chamber and a lower housing defining a low chamber, wherein the semipermeable diaphragm is semipermeable to moisture such that moisture is allowed to move from the lower chamber to the upper chamber, but liquid drops are prohibited to move from the upper chamber to the lower chamber; and a nozzle assembly disposed above the wafer support and for spraying at least developer to the wafer support.

An exposure apparatus 10 includes an optical pickup 12 configured to emit laser light and being capable of adjusting the focus of the laser light, a control computing unit 16 configured to adjust the focus of the laser light, an auxiliary stage 21 having the light source unit 12 set thereon, the position of the auxiliary stage 21 being adjustable in the direction toward the master 1, an auxiliary stage control unit 25 configured to control the position of the auxiliary stage 21, wherein the optical pickup 12 includes an object lens 124 configured to direct the laser light to the master 1, a VCM actuator 125 configured to displace the object lens 124 in accordance with a drive current, and the auxiliary stage control unit 25 controls the position of the auxiliary stage 21 in accordance with the drive current for the VCM actuator 125.

An apparatus includes a developing tank, and the developing tank has a sidewall and a bottom. A fluid manifold is adjacent the bottom of the developing tank. The fluid manifold includes a plurality of holes and a plurality of valves. Developer and rinsing fluid flow through the plurality of holes. Each of the plurality of the valves corresponds to a different hole of the plurality of holes, and the plurality of valves allow the developer and the rinsing fluid to flow through the holes when open and prevent the developer and the flowing liquid from flowing through the holes when closed. The developer flows through a developer inlet to the fluid manifold. The rinsing fluid flows through a rinsing fluid inlet to the fluid manifold. A controller is configured to individually control opening and closing of each of the plurality of valves.

An apparatus includes a developing tank and a fluid manifold in the bottom of the developing tank. The fluid manifold includes a plurality of holes through which developer flows and a plurality of valves corresponding to the plurality of holes. The valves allow developer to flow through the holes when open and prevent developer from flowing through the holes when closed. A trench surrounds the fluid manifold through which developer is drained from the developing tank. A controller is configured to control opening and closing of the valves. In an embodiment, the apparatus includes a clamping mechanism configured to insert the substrate into and remove the substrate from the developing tank.

A method for inspecting a critical dimension may include providing a substrate, applying a photoresist on the substrate, variably irradiating a dose of light onto the photoresist, performing a photo process to develop the photoresist to form a photoresist pattern, performing an etching process using the photoresist pattern as an etching mask to form a plurality of patterns, measuring a width of each of the plurality of patterns and a spacing between adjacent ones of the plurality of patterns, and identifying a cause of a defect in the photo process based on the measured width and the measured spacing.

Products, such as branding labels and currency, fabricated to include an optical security element. The optical security assembly may include a carrier film or substrate. An image element, e.g., a printed ink layer, is provided on a first surface of the carrier film/substrate, and the optical security assembly further includes an array or plurality of micro lenses on a second surface of the carrier film/substrate opposite the image element. In order to make the registration and print requirements easier, a mask is provided between the printed ink layer to define color pixels, and the printed ink layer is provided in the form of color blocks in a checkboard pattern with each block aligned with a portion of the mask and a subset of the holes or openings that define the viewable color pixels.

A system including two dimensional, microelectromechanical system (MEMS) based spatial light modulators and anamorphic optics for improved contrast is provided. Generally, the system comprises an array of modulators having a plurality of pixels along a longitudinal axis, each pixel comprising a plurality of modulators along a transverse axis of the array. An illumination source including a laser and anamorphic optics for focuses light from the laser onto the array, and imaging optics focus modulated light from the array onto an image plane. The anamorphic optics are configured to provide a transverse numerical aperture (NA) along the transverse axis of the array that is smaller than a diffraction angle of the modulated light reflected from the array along a transverse axis of the image plane, and a longitudinal NA along the longitudinal axis of the array that is greater than the transverse NA. Other embodiments are also provided.