JP2008182282A - Positioning device and manufacturing method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

[Object] To provide a moving body capable of realizing high-speed and high-precision positioning in a positioning apparatus of a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus.
[Structure] The top plate, which is the moving body of the positioning device, is composed of an integral hollow structure made of SiC composite material, realizing light weight, high strength, and high rigidity. In this hollow structure, a stage device having excellent control characteristics is realized by an electromagnetic joint or a Lorentz force actuator. Furthermore, when manufacturing the hollow structure, the surface pressure of the lapping surface becomes uniform and high surface accuracy is realized by putting powder inside and lapping.
[Selection] Figure 2

Description

The present invention is used in a method for manufacturing a semiconductor element, a liquid crystal display element, etc. and a manufacturing apparatus for the element, for example, in a projection exposure apparatus, various precision processing apparatuses, or various precision measuring apparatuses, such as a semiconductor wafer, a mask, a reticle, etc. The present invention relates to a positioning device such as a stage for moving a substrate at high speed with high accuracy and enabling positioning. Further, it is also suitable for a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device or the like using an exposure apparatus using such a positioning apparatus.

FIG. 12 is a structural perspective view showing an XY stage as a conventional positioning device, which is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-229759.

  In the figure, 42 is a surface plate having a reference surface 43 for supporting the stage device, 38 is a fixed Y guide fixed to the surface plate 42, and the side surface is used as a reference surface. Reference numeral 37 denotes a Y stage as a moving body, which is guided by a fixed Y guide 38 and moves in the Y direction by a Y linear motor 41 having a stator 39 and a mover 40 on both sides thereof. Reference numeral 32 denotes an X stage, which includes an X linear motor movable element (not shown), is guided in the X direction by an X guide 33 provided on the Y stage 37, and is also guided by an X linear motor stator 34 provided on the Y stage 37. Thrust is applied in the X direction.

As shown in FIG. 12, the top plate 31 constituting the X stage 32 has a flat plate shape. The top plate 31 is provided with an X direction mirror 45 and a Y direction mirror 46 for measuring positions in the X direction and the Y direction. Each mirror is irradiated with a laser beam, and the positions in the X direction and the Y direction are reflected from the reflected light. It is measured.

In addition, by mounting the θZT drive mechanism shown in FIG. 16 on this stage, the stage can also be moved in the Z direction parallel to the exposure optical axis and the directions around the X, Y, and Z axes (θx, θy, θz). It becomes possible.

The upper part of the X stage 32 in FIG. 12 corresponds to the platform 151 in FIG. The platform 151 includes a cylindrical fixing member 202, and a porous pad 207 held by the fixing member 202 is integrated with a top plate 204 corresponding to the top plate 31 that holds a wafer and a wafer chuck (not shown). The inner peripheral surface of a certain guide member 203, 203a is supported without contact. The platform 151 can be rotated around its central axis by a θ linear motor 216, and can be reciprocated in the vertical direction in the figure by Z linear motors 215 arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction.

FIG. 13 is a control block diagram for each degree of freedom of the conventional positioning device. Reference numeral 57 denotes a mechanical characteristic Go of the positioning device. When a force f is input, a displacement x is generated. Reference numeral 58 denotes a control controller characteristic Gc, which includes a general controller PID characteristic, an amplifier characteristic, and each stabilization filter. When a value obtained by subtracting the displacement x from the target position xr is input, a predetermined force f is generated. For example, the displacement x during the positioning control in the X and Y directions is the output value of the laser interferometer. Following the target position of each degree of freedom with high speed and high accuracy determines the quality of the positioning device.

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing control system gain phase characteristics of a conventional positioning device. This characteristic shown in FIG. 14 is a combination of the mechanical characteristic Go and the controller characteristic Gc shown in FIG. 13, and is called a round transfer characteristic. In order to obtain the high-speed and high-accuracy followability described above, the gain characteristic of the positioning device is preferably higher (higher gain). However, the mechanical characteristic Go has various natural frequencies, and in the plate-shaped stage structure member 31 as in the prior art, the natural frequency having a high peak (poor damping) is in a low frequency band (300 Hz to). May occur.

The vibration of the stage structure member leads to the vibration of the position measurement mirror mounted on the stage, and the positioning accuracy is deteriorated.

Further, since a gain that is too high causes oscillation at the natural frequency, the gain characteristic of the control system (in FIG. 14, the zero cross frequency that is a measure of high gain is about 40 Hz) is limited.

For this reason, conventionally, a stabilization filter such as a low-pass filter or a notch filter must be used frequently to compensate so as to alleviate a high peak. Or we had to design the mechanism to bring the natural frequency to a higher frequency region.

  Therefore, for example, as shown in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-142555, the stage structure member has a hollow structure. As shown in FIG. 15, reference numeral 41 denotes a top plate constituting the X stage. The top plate 41 is formed of ceramic and has a hollow structure as shown in the figure. This hollow structure 42 is formed of ceramic elements divided into two or more parts, and has an injection port at the bottom. 43. In this way, after two or more bodies are fired once, each element is said to be joined by re-sintering, and the intermediate material for joining by re-sintering is an alumina-based glass having a close thermal expansion coefficient Joining is common, but when using a material with a small coefficient of thermal expansion in order to suppress thermal deformation of the top plate 41, there was concern about the joining strength of the joining surface due to the difference in thermal expansion coefficient. Furthermore, even if an adhesive was used as a joining method for other elements, there was anxiety in adhesive strength and adhesive reliability.

In the above-described conventional example, the top plate on which a substrate such as a wafer is mounted is moved to a predetermined position in the X and Y directions. Therefore, the XY stage is used to control the position of the top plate in the X and Y directions with a laser interferometer. Moves in the XY direction. The top plate receives a driving force from the base plate through the air film of the radial air bearing and moves to a predetermined position. At this time, it is desirable that the top plate and the base plate move together. However, in practice, the driving force received by the holding plate with respect to the movement of the base plate has a problem that a phase delay occurs due to the compressibility of the air film of the hydrostatic bearing.

Therefore, even if the radial air bearing is eliminated and the Lorentz force actuator (linear motor) used in the θZT drive mechanism is used for fine movement XY, the weight and acceleration of the top plate 31 and the wafer mounted thereon and the wafer chuck can be reduced. It has been very difficult to give the Lorentz force actuator (linear motor) a force that can withstand the size of the motor and the heat generation surface from the motor.

  Further, the top plate 204 of the XY stage, which is a conventional positioning device as disclosed in JP-A-8-229759, is composed of a single plate, and there is a problem that the natural frequency of the plate does not increase. It was. As shown in JP-A-11-142555, the hollow structure 42 has a problem that it cannot be produced if there is a difference in thermal expansion between the ceramic material of the joining member and the material of the hollow structure. There was a problem that could not be applied to materials with small coefficients. Therefore, when an adhesive is used, there is a problem that even if the shape is the same, there is a difference between parts due to adhesion variation, and the natural frequency of the integral part that is calculated is not increased.

  Further, in the conventional method, since the material is a single plate when the material has a small coefficient of thermal expansion, in order to obtain the necessary rigidity, the plate thickness is increased, and the top plate is heavier than the rigidity improvement. This increases the load on the acceleration linear motor described above. At the same time, the current required to produce a force that can withstand this acceleration increases, and the heat generated from the linear motor increases with the square of the current. Lastly, this causes the environment of the wafer space to be disturbed, and in the current situation where microfabrication of semiconductor elements is required to be processed at high speed, there is a problem that the alignment accuracy and stage accuracy are adversely affected and productivity is lowered. there were.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a moving body that is excellent in control characteristics and can realize high-speed and high-precision positioning in a positioning apparatus such as a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus.

In order to achieve the above object, a positioning device of the present invention is a positioning device for moving a moving object in any one of an N2 atmosphere, a He atmosphere, and a vacuum atmosphere . A second plate for holding the first plate, and the second plate is made of a ceramic material, and the structure of the second plate is made of the same kind of material. A hollow structure having a hollow interior, wherein the hollow interior has a rib structure for increasing a natural frequency with respect to a torsion mode of the second plate, and for conducting the hollow interior and the outside air in the environment. It is characterized by a hole.

  In addition, the plurality of optical mirrors for knowing the relative positions of the wafer chuck, the top plate, and the moving object such as the wafer are preferably made of the same material, and preferably all have a hollow structure.

  In addition, this integrated hollow top plate is provided with an actuator using a short stroke electromagnetic force and a mechanism for supporting the gravity direction of the top plate in order to move the moving object to a predetermined position with six degrees of freedom. May be a feature.

The entire positioning device according to the present invention preferably includes a long-stroke electromagnetic force actuator capable of moving the top plate XY in a long stroke separately from the short-stroke electromagnetic force actuator. An X stage that is a stage moved by an actuator is provided, and the mechanism for supporting the short stroke electromagnetic force actuator and the gravity direction of the top plate is supported by the X stage. The short stroke electromagnetic force actuator preferably includes at least three Lorentz force actuators in order to control the object to be moved at predetermined positions in the horizontal plane direction and the yawing direction. Furthermore, it is preferable to provide an electromagnet actuator that compensates for acceleration for moving the object to be moved in the horizontal plane direction. And in order to reduce the difference between the power point of the Lorentz force actuator and the electromagnetic actuator and the center of gravity of the top plate, it has a hollow top plate structure in which the back side of the top plate portion to which the movable side of the electromagnetic actuator is attached is dug. Is preferred. In the Lorentz force actuator, it is preferable to arrange the coil and magnet of the actuator so that the object to be moved is within a few percent of the maximum thrust constant when the moving object is at the exposure position.

  In addition, at least three Lorentz force actuators are provided to control the object to be moved to predetermined positions in the vertical direction and the pitching / rolling direction, and the movement of the second plate necessary for conveying the object to be moved In order to support the load of the top plate in the direction of gravity, the top plate and the wafer, chuck, mirror, Lorentz force actuator movable portion, electromagnetic actuator movable portion, self-weight, etc. It is preferable to provide a self-weight compensation mechanism including a repulsive force / attraction force of a magnet that generates a force equal to or substantially equal to the combined weight of the compensation unit movable unit, or a coil spring.

The actuator attached to the top plate is also characterized in that the coil of the actuator is on the X stage side in order to reduce deformation of the top plate, mirror, wafer, etc. due to heat generated by the actuator. Good. Also, for example, piping, etc. for passing electricity, gas, liquid, etc. and mounting wiring required for a chuck or the like mounted on the hollow top plate from the upper plate of the X stage are the central part or outermost peripheral part of the hollow top plate. Then, the vibration transmissibility by wiring and piping may be small.

Moreover, it is preferable that the upper plate of the X stage includes a delivery support bar for temporarily holding the wafer in order to move the wafer from the transfer hand to the chuck. The delivery support bar is composed of at least three and penetrates the chuck and the hollow top plate. When the hollow top plate moves up and down due to the relationship between the Z-direction Lorentz force actuator and the self-weight compensation mechanism, the transfer support bar protrudes from the upper surface of the chuck, and the transfer support bar can temporarily support the wafer for transfer.

As a method for finishing the surface with the hollow top plate, powder may be put into the hollow inside of the hollow structure through the conduction hole between the hollow inside of the hollow top plate and the outside air. By putting this powder, if the weight of the hollow interior filled with the powder is equal to the weight of the hollow interior filled with the material of the hollow structure, the surface pressure is kept constant at the time of lapping. There is a feature that high surface accuracy can be obtained. Moreover, the manufacturing process of the mirror surface required in order to know the relative position of a to-be-moved object can be performed after mechanically fixing to the said hollow top plate.

  In short, in the present invention, the top plate, which is a moving body of the positioning device, is integrally formed of a low thermal expansion material having a coefficient of thermal expansion of 1.0e-6 (1 / ° C.) or less, an inorganic fiber composite material, SiC or SiC composite material. It is composed of a hollow structure and is resistant to thermal deformation, realizing light weight, high strength, and high rigidity. In this hollow structure, a positioning device with excellent control characteristics is realized by an electromagnetic joint or a Lorentz force actuator. Furthermore, when manufacturing the hollow structure, the surface pressure of the lapping surface becomes uniform and high surface accuracy is realized by putting powder in the hollow and lapping.

  In the present invention, in the structural member of the stage, the top plate that most affects the accuracy is a low thermal expansion material, an inorganic fiber composite material, SiC, or SiC having a thermal expansion coefficient of 1.0e-6 (1 / ° C.) or less. An integrated hollow structure made of SiC composite material formed from Si, and its rib structure starts from the abdomen of the side plate away from the corner where the side plate of the top plate contacts the side plate, and the abdomen of another side plate having a positional relationship with the graphic object As a result, the top plate can realize light weight, high strength, and high rigidity. In addition, a positioning device having excellent control characteristics can be realized by an electromagnetic joint or a Lorentz force actuator.

In addition, by optimizing the distribution of thrust constants based on the stroke position of the Lorentz force actuator with a stroke that allows the hollow top plate to move up and down, it is possible to replace substrates such as wafers with minimal influence on the temperature environment and focus during exposure Realized control.

By putting powder in the hollow structure and lapping, the surface pressure of the lapping surface became uniform and high surface accuracy could be realized.
Accordingly, it is possible to provide a positioning device that performs high-speed and high-accuracy positioning, and high productivity and alignment accuracy can be realized in the exposure apparatus.

  A positioning apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings, taking as an example the case where the object to be moved is a wafer as a photosensitive substrate. The present invention can also be applied to the case where the object to be moved is an original having a photosensitive pattern.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic top view showing a top plate and its periphery constituting a positioning device according to a first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line aa, and FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line bb. This positioning device has a chuck 1 as a first plate, a hollow top plate 2 as a second plate for holding the chuck 1, a mirror 3, an electromagnetic joint 4, a self-weight compensation mechanism 6, and a delivery support rod 8. The X-direction fine movement linear motor LMX, the Y-direction fine movement linear motor LMY, the Z-direction fine movement linear motor LMZ, etc. for finely adjusting the position of the hollow top plate 2 and the like are provided on the X stage upper plate 51a. Configured.

In the figure, the hollow top plate 2 is formed by sintering an integrated hollow structure before sintering. The hollow top plate 2 is made of an inorganic fiber composite material or a SiC composite material formed of SiC and Si, and is entirely formed by sintering with the same kind of material. Since two or more parts are sintered without using dissimilar materials such as glass bonding by an adhesive or re-sintering, there is no deterioration in rigidity at the joint portion as in the prior art.
In the case of being made of a low thermal expansion material or SiC having a thermal expansion coefficient of 1.0e-6 (1 / ° C.) or less, it is impossible to sinter at the same time in order to obtain a hollow structure, resulting in two or more parts. Even in such a case, it is not like adhesive or glass bonding that does not match the thermal expansion coefficient, but by using metal bonding so as to absorb the difference in thermal expansion coefficient, There is no deterioration of rigidity. Thereby, it is possible to make an integral hollow structure with the same kind of material.

Further, in order to ensure rigidity, the hollow top plate 2 has a rib structure as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, and a conduction hole for conducting the hollow interior H2 constituted by the rib structure with the outside air. H2a. Outside air is, for example, not only air but also N ₂ atmosphere, He atmosphere, and vacuum. Although the hollow structure is manufactured in an inert gas atmosphere, this is different from the environment when the stage is mounted or stored. The conduction hole H2a is provided in order to prevent the gas remaining in the hollow top plate 2 from leaking into the atmosphere and causing the stage environment to be contaminated by the leaked gas and the degree of vacuum does not increase. It has been.

  On the upper surface of the hollow top plate 2, there is a wafer chuck 1 for mounting a wafer W which is a photosensitive substrate, and this chuck 1 is fixed to the top plate 2 by vacuum air or mechanical clamp (not shown). The wafer W is also clamped to the chuck 1 by vacuum air or electrostatic force (not shown).

Further, in order to measure the relative position of the wafer W, a mirror 3 is provided. Although only one mirror 3 is shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of mirrors 3 exist so that six degrees of freedom can be measured. In FIG. 1, the top view of the mirror 3 should be visible, but is omitted. The method of fixing the mirror 3 and the hollow top plate 2 is, for example, according to the method disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-19157.

The chuck 1 and the mirror 3 are also made of the same material as the hollow top plate 2 and have the same thermal expansion coefficient and thermal conductivity. Thereby, even if the temperature of the top plate 2 changes due to the exposure heat or the heat of the actuator, deformation due to the difference in thermal expansion coefficient does not occur between the hollow top plate 2 and the mirror 3 or between the hollow top plate 2 and the chuck 1. . Furthermore, since the chuck 1 and the mirror 3 also have a hollow structure and have hollow interiors H1 and H3, it is possible to realize light weight and high rigidity. Reduction in weight of the chuck 1 and the mirror 3 has an effect of improving the natural frequency of the entire movable body including the hollow top plate 2.

  The hollow top plate 2 includes an actuator using electromagnetic force to move the wafer W to a predetermined position with six degrees of freedom and a mechanism for supporting the gravity direction of the top plate 2 on the lower surface. There are two types of actuators that use electromagnetic force. One is an electromagnetic joint 4 that handles acceleration force in the XY directions, and the other is a fine movement linear motor LM as a Lorentz force actuator for controlling six degrees of freedom. The actuator has a short stroke and is mounted on an upper plate 51a of an X stage 51 that can move for a long stroke as shown in FIG.

  Here, the Y stage 54 and the X stage 51 will be described as the long stroke stage portion. The Y stage 54 is levitated from the surface plate 55 by supplying air to a static pressure air bearing (not shown) on the lower surface side of the Y stage guide 54a, and the two drive actuators 54c arranged on both sides of the Y stage 54 are By supplying air to a static pressure air bearing (not shown) on the side surface of the fixed guide 52 provided on one side and one Y stage guide 54a, the guide is horizontally guided along the fixed guide 52 and movable in the Y direction. The X stage 51 is levitated from the surface plate 55 in the same manner as the Y stage 54 by supplying air to a static pressure air bearing (not shown) on the lower surface side of the X stage base 51c. The stage guide 51b is guided in the horizontal direction along the side surface 54b by supplying air to a static pressure air bearing (not shown), and can be moved in the X direction by the drive actuator 51d. At this time, the X stage 51 and the Y stage 54 are adjusted by a plurality of pressurizing magnet units so as to always have a constant posture. A laser interferometer (not shown) is provided on the stage of the long stroke portion. As the mirrors corresponding to the interferometer, optical mirrors such as those arranged on a conventional top plate may be provided on the upper surface of the X stage 51, and one Y direction is arranged on the portion 54d of the Y stage. The position of the stage 51 may be detected by measuring the position of the optical mirror on the X stage 51 from the Y stage 54. The long stroke portion may be the same as the stage disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-229759 except that a laser interferometer system is added to control the long stroke portion.

  Conventionally, in the final positioning control in the XY directions, the position of the wafer W is controlled by the drive actuator 54c and the drive actuator 51d having the long stroke via the radial air bearing. In the present embodiment, final positioning control in the XY directions is performed by the fine movement linear motors LMX and LMY which are Lorentz force actuators on the lower surface of the hollow top plate 2 described above. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the control performance of this long stroke, and it is possible to reduce the component cost and the adjustment cost. Furthermore, conventionally, in order to place importance on the control characteristics, the long stroke actuator need not be a Lorentz force actuator, but may be another linear motor type that places importance on heat generation and thrust.

Here, it is the electromagnetic joint 4 that transmits the acceleration force generated by the long stroke actuator to the fine movement movable portion including the hollow top plate 2. Since one electromagnetic coupling 4 generates only a force in the attractive force direction in one unit, two electromagnetic couplings 4 are arranged opposite to each other in the X direction as shown in FIG. Although not shown in the drawing, they are arranged so as to be opposed to each other in the Y direction in the vertical direction of the page. As for the electromagnetic coupling 4, the fixed side 4b is arrange | positioned at the center part on the X-stage upper board 51a, and the movable side 4a is arrange | positioned at the hollow top plate 2 side. From the viewpoint of heat generation and mounting, the coil of the electromagnetic coupling 4 is on the fixed side (not shown). Both the movable side 4a and the fixed side 4b are made of electromagnetic steel plates. The laminated steel plate on the stationary side 4b has an E shape or a U shape so that a coil can be inserted. There is an appropriate gap between the movable side 4a and the fixed side 4b of the electromagnetic coupling 4. This gap amount depends on the X stage 51 and the fine movement controlled by the long stroke actuator at the time of acceleration and the stroke required for the movement and assembly accuracy and control of the surface of the electromagnetic coupling 4 facing and wafer alignment. It is determined by the difference (control residual on the long stroke side) from the position of the movable part. Further, when the fine movement movable portion positions the wafer W in the rotation direction, the opposing surface is also cylindrical so that the portion of the electromagnetic coupling 4 does not interfere around the Z axis.

The centers of the arcs of the opposing surfaces of the unit composed of the four electromagnetic joints 4 are all the same. The same radius is desirable in terms of machining accuracy. It is desirable that the center of the arc in the XY plane is as equal as possible to the center of gravity G of the finely movable portion including the hollow top plate 2.

As described above, a fine movement linear motor LM, which is a Lorentz force actuator, is arranged on the lower surface of the hollow top plate 2 so as to be controlled with six degrees of freedom as another actuator. Fine movement linear motors LMX and LMY for fine movement in the XY directions are arranged outside the electromagnetic coupling 4, and two fine movement linear motors LMY in the Y direction on the X axis and two fine movement linears in the X direction on the Y axis. There is a motor LMX. The control in the yawing direction is performed by either the Y-direction fine movement linear motor LMY or the X-direction fine movement linear motor LMX. As another arrangement, it is also possible to arrange one linear motor of fine movement linear motors LMX and LMY in the XY direction at the center of gravity of the fine movement movable part. In the XY direction fine motion linear motors LMX and LMY, from the viewpoint of heat generation / mounting, magnets and yokes are arranged on the movable sides LMX1 and LMY1, and the heat generating coils are set to the fixed sides LMX2 and LMY2.

In order to control the Z direction and the pitching / rolling direction, three Z-direction fine movement linear motors LMZ are arranged around the lower surface of the top plate 2 as shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a side view as seen from the direction of arrows bb in FIG. Similarly to the XY direction fine movement linear motors LMX and LMY, the Z direction fine movement linear motor LMZ also has a magnet and a yoke arranged on the movable side LMZ1 from the viewpoint of heat generation and mounting, and the heat generating coil is set to the fixed side LMZ2.

Furthermore, a self-weight compensation mechanism 6 is provided on the lower surface of the hollow top plate 2. The self-weight compensation mechanism 6 is configured such that the generated force is substantially equal to the weight of the fine movement movable portion as shown in FIG. The force residual is due to a change in the force generated by the self-weight compensation mechanism 6 depending on the vertical position of the hollow top plate 2. This force residual is completely removed by the fine movement linear motor LMZ in the Z direction. Due to this force residual, it is necessary for the fine movement linear motor LMZ to generate a large thrust constantly in the Z direction. The force generated by the self-weight compensation mechanism 6 is generated around the hollow top plate 2 by the heat generated by the fine movement linear motor LM. The environment has been adjusted so as not to deteriorate. In order to reduce the generated force fluctuation, the self-weight compensation mechanism 6 is realized by using the attractive magnet 6a and the compression spring 6b in combination. In addition to this, a belofram or magnet repulsion that exhibits the same effect may be used.

When the self-weight compensation mechanism 6 is coaxial with the Z-direction fine movement linear motor LMZ, it does not give the hollow top plate 2 a force residual that cannot be removed by the self-weight compensation mechanism 6, so that it is desirable that the self-weight compensation mechanism 6 be coaxial.

Three transfer support rods 8 for temporarily holding the wafer W when the wafer W is replaced from the fixed side of the electromagnetic coupling 4 are provided. During exposure such as when the wafer W is held on the chuck 1, the lower surface of the wafer W and the upper surface of the chuck 1 are above the upper surface of the delivery support bar 8. The delivery support bar 8 itself does not have a function of moving up and down, and the entire hollow top plate 2 jumps out of the upper surface of the chuck 1 as shown in FIG. 4 by moving downward by the fine movement linear motor LMZ in the Z direction. As a result, the support bar 8 can hold the wafer W on the back surface of the wafer W. The space between the back surface of the wafer W and the top surface of the chuck 1 is created by lowering the entire hollow top plate 2 to a gap where the transfer hand 9 can enter and exit to transfer the wafer W. Thus, the wafer W can be exchanged by the transfer hand 9.

Further, the mirror 3 has such a height that it can be measured by a laser interferometer even when the hollow top plate 2 is lowered downward from the exposure position by wafer transfer or the like.

As shown in FIG. 4, the XY fine linear motors LMX and LMY and the Z fine linear motor LMZ generate thrust even when the chuck 1 is cleaned up from the exposure position or down due to wafer W replacement. It has a magnet and coil arrangement that can be generated. At this time, since the time for exchanging the wafer W is short and the heat generation amount is small, it is not necessary to produce the same thrust as that at the exposure position, and by making the thrust constant about 10% smaller than that at the exposure position, The fine movement linear motor LM should be made compact. If a large fine motion linear motor LM is used to maintain the same thrust at any position, the magnet becomes larger and the fine motion movable part becomes heavier. It affects the environment. This heat generation raises the temperature of the top 2 and causes a problem that the distance between the wafer W and the mirror 3 changes. In addition, the load on the coarse motion linear motor increases. Furthermore, if the relatively large fine movement linear motor LM is also increased in the Z direction, the fine movement movable portion gravity center G is separated from the driving point (power point) of the coarse movement linear motor. The lower surface of the X stage 51 in FIG. 17 that receives the moment due to this increases the load of the static pressure air bearing. Since the load of the static pressure air bearing per unit area is determined, the lower surface of the X stage 51 is enlarged. This increases the size of the X stage 51 and places a load on the X linear motor that transports the X stage 51 and the linear motor of the Y stage 54 that transports the X stage 51 further. Thus, the load tends to increase toward the downstream, and in the case of the configuration of the present embodiment, it is important to make the fine movement linear motor LM compact. As shown in FIG. 2, in the fine movement linear motor LM, the relationship between the coil and the magnet at the exposure position is in an asymmetric position (centers are coincident), and is within a few percent of the maximum thrust constant when in the exposure position. It is characterized by arranging a coil and a magnet.

The maximum thrust constant is set to within a few percent of the maximum thrust constant instead of the maximum thrust constant at the time of exposure. This is because it cannot be ignored.

As shown in FIG. 2, the hollow top plate 2 according to the present embodiment is characterized by having a digging in the central portion thereof in order to match the power points of the fine movement movable portion and the electromagnetic coupling 4. For example, if the distance α is 10 mm, the weight of the top plate 2 is 10 kg, the support span of the Z-direction fine movement linear motor LMZ is 100 mm, and the wafer W is moved at an acceleration of 1 G, the moment based on the distance α Therefore, it is necessary to handle a force of 1 kgf with the Z-direction fine movement linear motor LMZ. In order to reduce the heat generation from the Z-direction fine movement linear motor LMZ, the distance α between the gravity center G of the fine movement movable portion and the power point of the electromagnetic coupling 4 is preferably zero. Conversely, when the electromagnetic joint 4 is mounted on the hollow top plate 2 on the same surface as the surface on which the fine movement linear motors LMX, LMY, LMZ in the XYZ directions are mounted, the Z direction fine movement linear motor is proportional to the increase in the distance α. The force that the LMZ is responsible for increases, and a large-size fine motion linear motor LMZ is required. As a result, the moving load increases and it becomes extremely difficult to establish a stage. The figure shown in FIG. 2 is consciously represented with a large difference for explanation.

Next, the structure of the hollow top plate 2 will be described. The hollow top plate 2 is given a function of reinforcing predetermined strength and rigidity by an internal rib. Further, the hollow top plate 2 has a conduction hole H2a as shown in FIG. 2 in order to make the room partitioned by the rib equal to the external environment.

In the control system of the positioning device according to this embodiment, in order to obtain high-speed and high-accuracy follow-up performance, it is desirable that the gain characteristic of the positioning device is higher (higher gain). Therefore, it is necessary to increase the value of the natural frequency of the mechanical characteristics represented by the characteristics of the stage, which has conventionally limited the gain characteristics, and the hollow top plate 2 according to this embodiment has a hollow interior and ribs. Due to the structure, the natural frequency has been greatly improved compared to the conventional system, and the gain characteristics of the control system have been improved. For example, in a scanning type exposure apparatus, in order to set the synchronization accuracy between the wafer W and the reticle to a level of several nanometers, the zero cross frequency in a single stage is required to be higher every year. The value of the hollow top plate 2 required to achieve this is proportional to the value of several times the conventional value. By applying the present invention, the top plate 2 having a high natural frequency can be realized.

A specific configuration of the rib will be described. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a rib structure of the hollow top plate 2. When the hollow top plate 2 is not dug in the center, the configuration of the ribs is as shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 18, when the rib structure is analyzed by eigenvalue analysis for five patterns (no ribs, rhombus ribs, cross ribs, round ribs, and X ribs), the primary mode is the torsion mode. Yes, the natural frequency increases in order of increasing strength with respect to the torsion mode. In this order, the natural frequency increases in the order of no rib, cross rib, round rib, X-type rib, and rhombus. It can be seen that the rib-shaped ribs shown in the present invention are superior to the rhombus-shaped ribs compared to the X-shaped ribs generally used when putting the ribs on a surface plate or the like.
That is, the rib structure is integrated with the upper and lower plates of the hollow top plate 2. And there is an outer side plate surrounding the upper and lower plates of the hollow top plate, and this rib starts from the abdomen of the side plate away from the corner where the side plate and the side plate are in contact with the abdomen of another side plate having a graphic object positional relationship What is necessary is just to arrange | position so that it may connect.

  This is specifically shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 5 (a), the rib structure repeats the above rhombus, as if the cross section had a square □ rib R1 having four sides along the XY fine movement direction, and the cross section had an inclination angle of 45 degrees. By arranging the rib R2 of the rhombus ◇ consisting of four sides formed alternately, the rib R2a in the rib R1a, the rib R1b inside, and the rib R2b inside, respectively, a very high natural frequency can be obtained. Could be realized.

The present embodiment is characterized in that the electromagnetic coupling 4 is disposed in the central portion. A rib structure to which this is applied is shown in FIG. This rib structure is a circular rib with a slightly larger inner circle that forms the mounting hole H2c of the movable portion 4a of the electromagnetic joint 4 so that it does not interfere with the outer diameter of the fixed portion of the electromagnetic joint 4 and has a circular inner periphery in cross section. The circumscribed portion of the diamond has a structure having a combination rib R3 of a circle and a rhombus, so-called rhombus ◇. On the outside, a square □ rib having the same pattern as in FIG. 5 and a rhombus ◇ rib having an angle of 45 degrees on each side of the cross section are alternately repeated to form a diamond □ in the square □ rib R1a. Rib R2a, and a square □ rib R1b is inside thereof.
Further, FIG. 5 (b) is shown as a development system of FIG. 5 (a). By reducing the triangular portions at the outer four corners, the natural frequency is improved in FIG. However, in an actual configuration, the mass of the mirror 3 or the like is carried. In such a case, as shown in FIG. 5 (b), the ribs are taken out from the antinode Rw, which is vulnerable to torsion, instead of putting the ribs diagonally so that the ribs come out from the contact point where the side plate contacts the side plate. It is effective for improving the number.

Here, regarding the thickness of the rib, in this embodiment, about 5 mm is optimal in calculation. Even if it is increased to 10 mm, the natural frequency is only slightly improved. In the case of a SiC composite material made of SiC and Si, since it is not sintered in advance as a single product in order to make a hollow structure, it is necessary to secure the surface to be joined or to maintain strength during sintering of a single product. Therefore, it is not necessary to increase the rib thickness. The hollow top plate 2 according to the present embodiment has a rib structure before the final sintering, and has an advantage that the strength before sintering can be ensured by making the structure hollow. Although it does not contribute to the improvement of the natural frequency as in the prior art, it is not necessary to take the thickness of the hollow rib serving as the joint surface, so that the hollow top plate 2 is not made heavier than necessary. As a result, the hollow top plate 2 can be reduced in weight, the load on the acceleration linear motor described above is reduced, and the current required to generate the force to withstand this acceleration is reduced at the same time, and the heat generated from the linear motor is reduced. Is greatly improved, the influence on the environment is reduced, and the positioning accuracy is improved.
In addition, when the inorganic fiber composite material is used, the specific rigidity is high, so that lighter weight and higher rigidity can be realized.
When a low thermal expansion material having a thermal expansion coefficient of 1.0e-6 (1 / ° C) or less is used, when the material of the low thermal expansion material is cordierite, the Young's modulus is low and cannot be applied as a top plate. However, the hollow top plate having the rib structure of the present invention can be realized even with a low thermal expansion material.
In addition, it goes without saying that the same effect can be obtained even when SiC, which is a material having a high Young's modulus, is used in order to obtain higher rigidity than the SiC composite material.

As a second embodiment shown in FIG. 7, a mirror-integrated hollow top plate 2 in which an optical mirror is bonded or mechanically fixed to a side surface of the hollow top plate 2 will be described.
The material of the optical mirror 3 is also the same material as the hollow top plate 2 in order to avoid deformation of the hollow top plate 2 due to a difference in thermal expansion coefficient. Since the same material is used as an integral structure, there is no problem that the mirror 3 moves due to acceleration during the movement of the stage. Further, since the mirror 3 is held on the hollow top plate 2 having high rigidity, there is an advantage that the mirror 3 does not have to be deformed.

The piping and the mounting wiring for passing electricity, gas, liquid, etc. required for the chuck 1 mounted on the hollow top plate 2 from the upper plate 51a of the X stage 51 and the sensor (not shown) and the like are mounted on the hollow top plate 2 The vibration transmissibility by wiring and piping can be reduced in the central part or the outermost peripheral part. In order to obtain a small vibration transmissibility, a relatively hard pipe to which an internal pressure such as air is applied, as shown in FIG. 13, via the introduction pipe 15 at the central part on the movable side of the electromagnetic coupling 4, and further through the central part of the top plate 2, to the wafer suction vacuum groove 18 of the chuck 1. At this time, the element that determines the vibration transmissibility is the connection tube 13. This embodiment is characterized in that the tube 13 is arranged in the center, so that an asymmetric interference component due to the tube 13 is hardly generated and controllability is good. Although the central portion is advantageous, in order to reduce the influence of the tube 13, it is desirable that the connecting tube 13 is thin, long and spiral. Since the mounting cables 17 such as a relatively soft electric cable have little influence on vibration, the outer peripheral side of the top plate 2 is desirable. In particular, the signal cable is preferably arranged on the outer periphery rather than being arranged inside like an air piping tube in order to facilitate replacement such as disconnection.

Next, a method for processing the hollow top plate 2 will be described. In order to finish the optical mirror surface, first, as described above, the member of the mirror 3 is fixed to the hollow top plate 2, and as shown in FIG. 9, through the conduction hole H2a with the outside air of the hollow top plate 2, Powder (sphere / cylinder) 20 is placed in the hollow interior H2 of the hollow structure. By inserting the powder 20, the weight of the hollow interior H2 filled with the powder 20 is made equal to the weight of the hollow interior filled with the material of the hollow structure. When the powder 20 is cylindrical and arranged so as to be aligned, when the specific gravity of the SiC composite material is 3.0, the specific gravity of the powder 20 is 3.8. Alumina ceramics may be used as the material.

By filling the powder 20 in this way, the surface pressure of the member becomes the same as that of the solid top plate when grinding, lapping or polishing. In particular, when a high-precision flat surface such as a lapping machine 22 is provided, the amount of processing varies depending on the difference in surface pressure, but this can be solved by filling the powder 20. FIG. 10 is a diagram in which the surface of the mirror 3 is lapped. FIG. 11 is a view in which the surface 2a of the hollow top plate 2 to which the chuck 1 is attached is finished. Such a method is not limited to the case of processing the surface of the mirror 3 of the hollow top plate 2 but also when finishing other hollow members such as a hollow guide that requires a flatness of 1 μm or less. Applicable.

FIG. 8 is a view showing a positioning device according to the third embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 2, in the portion where the movable portion 4 a of the electromagnetic joint 4 is attached to the hollow top plate 2, the hollow top plate 2 side is a single plate. However, if the acceleration force received by the electromagnetic joint 4 is large, the hollow portion is hollow. The top plate 2 is deformed. Due to this deformation, the wafer chuck 1 is also deformed. As a result, the wafer W is also deformed, causing an alignment error. Therefore, in the third embodiment, in order to increase the strength of the hollow top plate 2, the thickness of the plate is also simply increased in the portion 2b of the hollow top plate 2 to which the movable portion 4a of the electromagnetic joint 4 is attached. Instead, it has a hollow structure to achieve light weight and high rigidity.

It is a top view of the positioning device concerning a first embodiment of the present invention. It is aa sectional drawing in FIG. It is bb sectional drawing in FIG. It is operation | movement explanatory drawing of the positioning device which concerns on 1st embodiment of this invention, Comprising: It is sectional drawing in a center position. (A) is sectional drawing which shows the example of the rib structure of the hollow top plate of the positioning device which concerns on embodiment of this invention, (b) is as a rib structure of the hollow top plate of the positioning device which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows the example of the development system of (a). It is sectional drawing which shows the other example of the rib structure of the hollow top plate of the positioning device which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing in the center position of the positioning apparatus which concerns on 2nd embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing in the center position of the positioning device which concerns on 3rd embodiment of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the method of processing the hollow top plate which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the state which is lapping the mirror surface in the hollow top plate which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the state which has finished the surface where the chuck | zipper of the hollow top plate which concerns on embodiment of this invention is attached. It is a perspective view of the conventional positioning device. It is a control block diagram in each degree of freedom of the conventional positioning device. It is a figure showing the control system gain phase characteristic of the conventional positioning device. It is a perspective view which shows the hollow structure of the conventional stage structure member. It is sectional drawing of the (theta) ZT drive mechanism mounted in the conventional stage. It is a perspective view of X stage which can move a long stroke. It is a figure which shows five patterns (Ribless, rhombus rib, cross rib, round rib, X-type rib) of the rib structure of a hollow top plate.

Explanation of symbols

1: chuck (first plate), 2: hollow top plate (second plate), 3: mirror (including third plate), 4: electromagnetic coupling, 4a: movable side, 4b: fixed side, 6 : Self-weight compensation mechanism, 6a: suction magnet, 6b: compression spring, 8: delivery support rod, 9: transfer hand, 10: interference beam, 11: introduction tube, 13: connection tube, 15: introduction tube, 17: mounting cable 18: vacuum groove for wafer adsorption, 20: powder, 22: lapping machine, 51: X stage, 51a: X stage upper plate (fourth plate), 51b: X stage guide, 51c: X stage base, 51d: X drive actuator, 52: Fixed guide, 54: Y stage, 54a: Y stage guide, 54b: Side surface of Y stage, 54c: Y drive actuator, 54d: Y stage part, 55: Surface plate,
H1: Hollow inside, H2: Hollow inside, H2a: Conduction hole, H2c: Mounting hole, H3: Hollow inside, LMX: X direction fine movement linear motor, LMX1: Moving side, LMX2: Fixed side, LMY: Y direction fine movement linear motor , LMY1: movable side, LMY2: fixed side, LMZ: Z-direction fine movement linear motor, LMZ1: movable side, LMZ2: fixed side, W: wafer.

Claims (16)

In a positioning apparatus for moving a moving object in any of an N2 atmosphere, a He atmosphere, and a vacuum atmosphere, a first plate for holding the moving object and a second plate for holding the first plate The second plate is made of a ceramic material, and the structure of the second plate is formed of the same kind of material and has a hollow structure having a hollow interior. Has a rib structure for increasing the natural frequency for the torsional mode of the second plate, and has a hole for conducting the hollow interior and the outside air in the environment . The positioning device according to claim 1, wherein the rib structure is integrated with upper and lower plates of the second plate. There is an outer side plate surrounding the upper and lower plates of the second plate, and the rib starts from the abdomen of the side plate away from the corner where the side plate and the side plate are in contact with the abdomen of another side plate having a graphic object positional relationship. The positioning device according to claim 1, wherein the positioning device is connected. Rib structure according to claim 3, the rib cross section of a square when taken parallel to the holding surface, the cross section are joined at an angle to the ribs of the square, cross-section when cut parallel to the holding surface A positioning device characterized by having a configuration in which diamond-shaped ribs are alternately inserted. The material of the second plate is made of a low thermal expansion material having a coefficient of thermal expansion of 1.0e-6 (1 / ° C.) or less, an inorganic fiber composite material, SiC, or a composite material of SiC formed of SiC and Si. The positioning apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein 6. The positioning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the object to be moved is either a photosensitive substrate or an original having a photosensitive pattern in a positioning apparatus which is a substrate moving stage of a semiconductor exposure apparatus. The positioning device according to claim 1, wherein the first plate is made of the same material as the second plate, and the first plate also has a hollow structure. The second plate includes a plurality of optical mirrors as a third plate for knowing the relative position of the object to be moved, and the third plate forming the optical mirror is made of the same material as the second plate. The second plate has a mechanism for supporting an actuator using electromagnetic force and a gravitational direction of the second plate in order to move a moving object to a predetermined position with six degrees of freedom. The positioning device according to claim 1, comprising: In addition to the actuator, a long stroke actuator capable of moving the first plate in an XY manner with a long stroke is provided, and a fourth plate moved by the long stroke actuator is provided. The positioning device according to claim 8, wherein the mechanism for supporting the gravitational direction of the second plate is supported by the fourth plate. The actuators are at least three Lorentz force actuators for controlling the object to be moved to predetermined positions in the horizontal direction and the yawing direction, and concentrically arranged to compensate for the acceleration for moving the object to be moved. And at least four or more electromagnet actuators, wherein the movable side of the electromagnet actuator is fixed to the second plate, and the difference between the power point of the Lorentz force actuator and the electromagnet actuator and the center of gravity of the second plate is reduced. The positioning device according to claim 8 or 9, wherein at least the second plate portion to which the actuator is attached has a hollow plate structure with a digging on the back surface. 11. The positioning device according to claim 10, wherein the Lorentz force actuator arranges a coil and a magnet of the actuator so that the object to be moved is within a few percent of the maximum thrust constant when the moving object is at the exposure position. . The fourth plate is provided with a delivery support bar for temporarily holding the product to be moved from the transport hand to the first plate, and the delivery support bar has a minimum of 3 It is comprised from a book, It penetrates said 1st board and 2nd board, This 2nd board protrudes from the upper surface of said 1st board by raising and lowering with said actuator. Item 12. The positioning device according to any one of Items 9 to 11. The piping and the mounting wiring for passing electricity, gas, and liquid supplied from the fourth plate to the second plate are in either the central portion or the outermost peripheral portion of the second plate, The positioning device according to any one of claims 9 to 12. At least three Lorentz force actuators are provided to control the object to be moved to predetermined positions in the vertical direction and the pitching / rolling direction, and the second plate necessary for transporting the object can be moved. The positioning device according to claim 1, further comprising a stroke. In order to support the load in the gravitational direction of the second plate, a self-weight compensation mechanism that generates a force equal to the weight of the second plate and a component mechanically fixed to the second plate is provided. The positioning device according to claim 1, wherein In the manufacturing method of the positioning device according to any one of claims 1 to 15, which has a hollow structure that requires a finished surface of 1 µm or less, a hole for putting powder into the hollow interior of the hollow structure is provided, The manufacturing process is carried out with the weight in the hollow interior containing the powder equal to the weight in the hollow interior when the hollow interior is filled with the same material material as the second plate. A method for manufacturing a positioning device.

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