摘要:
An extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) light source comprising an optic, a target material, and a laser beam passing through said optic along a beam path to irradiate said target material. The EUV light source further includes a system generating a gas flow directed toward said target material along said beam path, said system having a tapering member surrounding a volume and a plurality of gas lines, each gas line outputting a gas stream into said volume.
摘要:
An apparatus and method which may comprise a pulsed gas discharge laser which may comprise a seed laser portion; an amplifier portion receiving the seed laser output and amplifying the optical intensity of each seed pulse; a pulse stretcher which may comprise: a first beam splitter operatively connected with the first delay path and a second pulse stretcher operatively connected with the second delay path; a first optical delay path tower containing the first beam splitter; a second optical delay path tower containing the second beam splitter; one of the first and second optical delay paths may comprise: a plurality of mirrors defining the respective optical delay path including mirrors located in the first tower and in the second tower; the other of the first and second optical delay paths may comprise: a plurality of mirrors defining the respective optical delay path including mirrors only in one of the first tower and the second tower.
摘要:
An extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) light source is described herein comprising an optic; a primary EUV light radiator generating an EUV light emitting plasma and producing a deposit on said optic; and a cleaning system comprising a gas and a secondary light radiator, the secondary light radiator generating a laser produced plasma and producing a cleaning species with the gas.
摘要:
An extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) light source comprising an optic, a target material, and a laser beam passing through said optic along a beam path to irradiate said target material. The EUV light source further includes a system generating a gas flow directed toward said target material along said beam path, said system having a tapering member surrounding a volume and a plurality of gas lines, each gas line outputting a gas stream into said volume.
摘要:
An apparatus and method which may comprise a pulsed gas discharge laser which may comprise a seed laser portion; an amplifier portion receiving the seed laser output and amplifying the optical intensity of each seed pulse; a pulse stretcher which may comprise: a first beam splitter operatively connected with the first delay path and a second pulse stretcher operatively connected with the second delay path; a first optical delay path tower containing the first beam splitter; a second optical delay path tower containing the second beam splitter; one of the first and second optical delay paths may comprise: a plurality of mirrors defining the respective optical delay path including mirrors located in the first tower and in the second tower; the other of the first and second optical delay paths may comprise: a plurality of mirrors defining the respective optical delay path including mirrors only in one of the first tower and the second tower.
摘要:
An extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) light source is described herein comprising an optic; a primary EUV light radiator generating an EUV light emitting plasma and producing a deposit on said optic; and a cleaning system comprising a gas and a secondary light radiator, the secondary light radiator generating a laser produced plasma and producing a cleaning species with the gas.
摘要:
An apparatus and method are disclosed which may comprise a pulsed gas discharge laser lithography light source which may comprise a seed laser portion providing a seed laser output light beam of seed pulses; an amplifier portion receiving the seed laser output light beam and amplifying the optical intensity of each seed pulse to provide a high power laser system output light beam of output pulses; the amplifier portion may comprise a ring power amplifier comprising amplifier portion injection optics comprising at least one beam expanding prism, a beam reverser and an input/output coupler; the beam expansion optics and the output coupler may be mounted on an optics assembly with the beam expansion optics rigidly mounted with respect to the optics assembly and the input/output coupler mounted for relative movement with respect to the optics assembly for optical alignment purposes.
摘要:
The present invention provides an excimer laser capable of producing a high quality pulsed laser beam at pulse rates of about 4,000 Hz at pulse energies of about 5 mJ or greater. A preferred embodiment is an ArF excimer laser specifically designed as a light source for integrated circuit lithography. An improved wavemeter with special software monitors output beam parameters and controls a very fast PZT driven tuning mirror and the pulse power charging voltage to maintain wavelength and pulse energy within desired limits. In a preferred embodiment two fan motors drive a single tangential fan which provides sufficient gas flow to clear discharge debris from the discharge region during the approximately 0.25 milliseconds between pulses.
摘要:
Methods and structural changes in gas discharge lasers for minimizing wavelength chirp at high pulse rates. Applicants have identified the major cause of wavelength chirp in high pulse rate gas discharge lithography lasers as pressure waves from a discharge reflecting back to the discharge region coincident with a subsequent discharge. The timing of the arrival of the pressure wave is determined by the temperature of the laser gas through which the wave is traveling. During burst mode operation, the laser gas temperature in prior art lasers changes by several degrees over periods of a few milliseconds. These changing temperatures change the location of the coincident pressure waves from pulse to pulse within the discharge region causing a variation in the pressure of the laser gas which in turn affects the index of refraction of the discharge region causing the laser beam exiting the rear of the laser to slightly change direction. This change in beam direction causes the grating in the LNP to reflect back to the discharge region light at a slightly different wavelength causing the wavelength chirp. Solution to the problem is to include in the laser chamber structural elements to moderate or disperse the pressure waves and to maintain the laser gas temperature as close as feasible to constant values.
摘要:
A gas discharge laser having a laser chamber with two elongated erodable electrode elements, each having an erodable section and an electrode with support configured to minimize discharge region laser gas turbulence and with the electrode elements being configured to permit gradual erosion over more than 8 billion pulses without causing substantial changes in the shape of electrical discharges between the electrode elements. A pulse power system provides electrical pulses of at least 2J at rates of at least 2 KHz. A blower circulates laser gas between the electrodes at speeds of at least 2 m/s and a heat exchanger is provided to remove heat produced by the blower and the discharges.