The present disclosure relates to an optical isolator, an ultraviolet laser apparatus, and an electronic device manufacturing method.
In recent years, a semiconductor exposure apparatus is required to improve the resolution thereof as semiconductor integrated circuits are increasingly miniaturized and highly integrated. To this end, reduction in the wavelength of light emitted from a light source for exposure is underway. For example, a KrF excimer laser apparatus, which outputs laser light having a wavelength of about 248 nm, and an ArF excimer laser apparatus, which outputs laser light having a wavelength of about 193 nm, are used as a gas laser apparatus for exposure.
The light from spontaneously oscillating KrF and ArF excimer laser apparatuses has a wide spectral linewidth ranging from 350 to 400 pm. A projection lens made of a material that transmits ultraviolet light, such as the KrF and ArF laser light, therefore undesirably produces chromatic aberrations in some cases. As a result, the resolution of the projection lens may decrease. To avoid the decrease in the resolution, the spectral linewidth of the laser light output from the gas laser apparatus needs to be narrow enough to make the chromatic aberrations negligible. To this end, a line narrowing module (LNM) including a line narrowing element (etalon or grating) is provided in some cases in a laser resonator of the gas laser apparatus to narrow the spectral linewidth. A gas laser apparatus providing a narrowed spectral linewidth is hereinafter referred to as a narrowed-line gas laser apparatus.
An optical isolator according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes an enclosure, a first polarizer disposed in the enclosure so as to transmit linearly polarized incident light having an ultraviolet wavelength, a first Faraday rotator including a first Faraday material configured to rotate a polarization direction of the light having passed through the first polarizer in a first rotational direction, and a first magnet configured to produce a first magnetic field applied to a first magnetic field generation region where the first Faraday material is disposed, the first Faraday rotator disposed in the enclosure, and a first position adjustment mechanism configured to move the first Faraday material relative to the enclosure, a cross-sectional shape of the first Faraday material in a cross section perpendicular to an optical axis of the light passing through the first Faraday material and a cross-sectional shape of the first magnetic field generation region having major axes in the same direction, and the first position adjustment mechanism moving the first Faraday material in a direction of a minor axis perpendicular to the major axis.
An ultraviolet laser apparatus according to another aspect of the present disclosure includes an oscillation-stage laser configured to output linearly polarized pulse laser light having an ultraviolet wavelength, an amplifier configured to amplify the pulse laser light and output the amplified pulse laser light, and an optical isolator disposed on an optical path between the oscillation-stage laser and the amplifier, the optical isolator including an enclosure, a first polarizer disposed in the enclosure so as to transmit linearly polarized incident light having the ultraviolet wavelength, a first Faraday rotator including a first Faraday material configured to rotate a polarization direction of the pulse laser light having passed through the first polarizer in a first rotational direction, and a first magnet configured to produce a first magnetic field applied to a first magnetic field generation region where the first Faraday material is disposed, the first Faraday rotator disposed in the enclosure, and a first position adjustment mechanism configured to move the first Faraday material relative to the enclosure, a cross-sectional shape of the first Faraday material in a cross section perpendicular to an optical axis of the light passing through the first Faraday material and a cross-sectional shape of the first magnetic field generation region having major axes in the same direction, and the first position adjustment mechanism moving the first Faraday material in a direction of a minor axis perpendicular to the major axis.
An electronic device manufacturing method according to another aspect of the present disclosure and performed by using an ultraviolet laser apparatus including an oscillation-stage laser configured to output linearly polarized pulse laser light having an ultraviolet wavelength, an amplifier configured to amplify the pulse laser light and output the amplified pulse laser light, and an optical isolator disposed on an optical path between the oscillation-stage laser and the amplifier, the optical isolator including an enclosure, a first polarizer disposed in the enclosure so as to transmit linearly polarized incident light having the ultraviolet wavelength, a first Faraday rotator including a first Faraday material configured to rotate a polarization direction of the pulse laser light having passed through the first polarizer in a first rotational direction, and a first magnet configured to produce a first magnetic field applied to a first magnetic field generation region where the first Faraday material is disposed, the first Faraday rotator disposed in the enclosure, and a first position adjustment mechanism configured to move the first Faraday material relative to the enclosure, a cross-sectional shape of the first Faraday material in a cross section perpendicular to an optical axis of the light passing through the first Faraday material and a cross-sectional shape of the first magnetic field generation region having major axes in the same direction, and the first position adjustment mechanism moving the first Faraday material in a direction of a minor axis perpendicular to the major axis, the method includes generating laser light amplified by the amplifier by using the ultraviolet laser apparatus, outputting the amplified laser light to an exposure apparatus, and exposing a photosensitive substrate to the laser light in the exposure apparatus to manufacture electronic devices.
Embodiments of the present disclosure will be described below only by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Embodiments of the present disclosure will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. The embodiments described below show some examples of the present disclosure and are not intended to limit the contents of the present disclosure. Furthermore, all configurations and operations described in the embodiments are not necessarily essential as configurations and operations in the present disclosure. The same component has the same reference character, and no redundant description of the same component will be made.
1. Description of Terms
The term “polarizer” is an optical element that separates light polarized in a specific polarization direction (direction of transmission axis) from light polarized in a direction perpendicular to the specific polarization direction.
The term “parallel” in the present specification is not limited to exactly parallel unless otherwise clearly stated except for a case where it is obvious from the context and includes the concept of approximately parallel including an angular difference range that falls within the technical sense but is practically accepted. The term “perpendicular” or “vertical” in the present specification is also not limited to exactly vertical or perpendicular unless otherwise clearly stated except for a case where it is obvious from the context and includes the concept of approximately perpendicular or vertical including an angular difference range that falls within the technical sense but is practically accepted.
2. Overview of Ultraviolet Laser Apparatus According to Comparative Example
2.1 Configuration
The ultraviolet laser apparatus 20 is an excimer laser apparatus including a master oscillator (MO) 22, which is an oscillation-stage laser, an MO beam steering unit 24, and a power oscillator (PO) 26, which is an amplification-stage laser. The MO 22 includes a line narrowing module (LNM) 30, a chamber 32, and an output coupling mirror 34.
The LNM 30 includes a prism expander 36 and a grating 38, which narrow the spectral linewidth. The prism expander 36 and the grating 38 are disposed in the Littrow arrangement, which causes the angle of incidence of the light incident on the grating 38 to be equal to the angle of diffraction of the light diffracted by the grating 38. The output coupling mirror 34 is a partially reflective mirror having a reflectance ranging from 40% to 60%. The output coupling mirror 34 and the LNM 30 are arranged to constitute an optical resonator.
The chamber 32 is disposed on the optical path of the optical resonator. The chamber 32 includes a pair of discharge electrodes 40a and 40b, and two windows 42 and 44, which transmit the laser light. The chamber 32 is filled with a laser gas. The laser gas contains a rare gas, a halogen gas, and a buffer gas. The rare gas may, for example, be an argon (Ar) or a krypton (Kr) gas. The halogen gas may, for example, be a fluorine (F2) gas. The buffer gas may, for example, be a neon (Ne) gas. A power supply that is not shown applies a voltage to the space between the discharge electrodes 40a and 40b. The power supply may be a pulse power module (PPM) including a switch and a charging capacitor.
The MO beam steering unit 24 includes highly reflective mirrors 50 and 52 and is so disposed that the laser light output from the MO 22 enters the PO 26.
An MO pulse energy monitor 54 is disposed between the highly reflective mirror 50 and the highly reflective mirror 52. The MO pulse energy monitor 54 includes a beam splitter (BS) 55 and a photosensor 56. The BS 55 is so disposed on the optical path of the pulse laser light output from the MO 22 that the light reflected off the BS 55 is incident on the photosensor 56.
The PO 26 is an amplification-stage laser including a rear mirror 60, a chamber 62, and an output coupling mirror 64. The rear mirror 60 and the output coupling mirror 64 constitute an optical resonator, and the chamber 62 is disposed on the optical path of the optical resonator.
The configuration of the chamber 62 may be the same as that of the chamber 32. The chamber 62 includes a pair of discharge electrodes 70a and 70b, and two windows 72 and 74. The chamber 62 is filled with a laser gas. The rear mirror 60 may, for example, be a partially reflective mirror having a reflectance ranging from 50% to 90%. The output coupling mirror 64 may be a partially reflective mirror having a reflectance ranging from 10% to 30%.
2.2 Operation
The power supply that is not shown applies high voltage pulses to the space between the discharge electrodes 40a and 40b in the chamber 32. When discharge occurs between the discharge electrodes 40a and 40b in the chamber 32, the laser gas is excited, and pulse laser light having ultraviolet wavelengths ranging from 150 nm to 380 nm, which form a narrowed linewidth achieved by the optical resonator including the output coupling mirror 34 and the LNM 30, is output via the output coupling mirror 34.
The energy of the pulse laser light having exited via the output coupling mirror 34 is measured by the MO pulse energy monitor 54. The MO beam steering unit 24 causes the pulse laser light to be incident as seed light on the rear mirror 60 of the PO 26.
At the timing when the seed light having passed through the rear mirror 60 enters the chamber 62, a power supply that is not shown applies high voltage pulses to the space between the discharge electrodes 70a and 70b in the chamber 62. When discharge occurs between the discharge electrodes 70a and 70b in the chamber 62, the laser gas is excited, and the seed light is amplified by the Fabry-Perot-type optical resonator including the output coupling mirror 64 and the rear mirror 60, and the amplified pulse laser light is output via the output coupling mirror 64.
3. Problems
On the other hand, the light having entered the PO 26 from the MO 22 and passed through the rear mirror 60 is caused to resonate and amplified in the PO 26 and output therefrom. As described above, since the rear mirror 60 in the PO 26 is a partially reflective mirror, part of the light having entered the chamber 62 of the PO 26 and having been amplified therein undesirably returns to the MO 22. The light amplified in the PO 26, passing through the rear mirror 60, and returning to the MO 22 is called “PO passage light”.
The return light from the PO 26 becomes a heat load on the LNM 30 and other components and may cause deterioration in the linewidth stability, pulse energy stability, and other factors. To suppress the return light that enters the MO 22, it is conceivable to dispose an optical isolator between the MO 22 and the PO 26.
The optical isolator 80 includes a half-wave plate 81, a first polarizer 83, a Faraday rotator 84, and a second polarizer 88 arranged in this order from the side facing the MO 22. The Faraday rotator 84 includes a Faraday material 85 and a magnet 86. The magnet 86 has a hollow structure, which houses the Faraday material 85 via an inner holder. The internal space (hollow portion) of the magnet 86 in which the Faraday material 85 is disposed is a magnetic field generation region where a magnetic field to be applied to the Faraday material 85 is generated. The magnet 86 may be a permanent magnet. In
As shown in the upper portion of
The polarization direction of the pulse laser light having passed through the first polarizer 83 is rotated by the Faraday material 85, to which the magnetic field is applied, by 45 degrees in the clockwise direction. The pulse laser light output from the Faraday rotator 84 is thus horizontally polarized. The second polarizer 88 has a transmission axis parallel to the polarization direction of the pulse laser light output from the Faraday rotator 84, so that the pulse laser light output from the Faraday rotator 84 passes through the second polarizer 88 and then enters the PO 26.
The half-wave plate 81 adjusts the polarization direction of the pulse laser light from the MO 22 in such a way that the polarization direction of the pulse laser light output from the MO 22 coincides with the polarization direction of the pulse laser light that enters the PO 26. The polarization direction of the pulse laser light thus does not change before and after the optical isolator 80 even when the optical isolator 80 is disposed.
Out of the return light, the polarization component having the same polarization direction as that of the pulse laser light that enters the PO 26 passes through the second polarizer 88, and is rotated by the Faraday material 85, to which the magnetic field is applied, by 45 degrees in the clockwise direction. The return light is then reflected off the first polarizer 83 and does not therefore enter the MO22.
Out of the return light, the polarization components having the polarization directions different from that of the pulse laser light that enters the PO 26 are reflected off the second polarizer 88 and do not therefore return to the MO22. The second polarizer 88 is disposed to remove the disturbed polarization components when the polarization of the return light from the PO 26 is disturbed to achieve the effect of the optical isolator 80 by a greater degree. The second polarizer 88 may not therefore be used when the polarization of the return light is not disturbed or when even the disturbed return light provides a sufficient extinction ratio.
The extinction ratio is the ratio of the return light passing through the first polarizer 83 to the return light that enters the second polarizer 88.
In the optical isolator 90, a Faraday rotator 91 is disposed in place of the half-wave plate 81 in
The Faraday rotator 91 has the same structure as that of the Faraday rotator 84 and includes a Faraday material FM and a magnet MG, none of which is shown. In
The optical isolator 90 includes an isolator enclosure 96, in which the Faraday rotator 91, the first polarizer 83, the Faraday rotator 84, and the second polarizer 88 are disposed.
The MO beam steering unit 24A includes the highly reflective mirror 50 and the beam splitter 55. The MO beam steering unit 24B includes the highly reflective mirror 52. The isolator enclosure 96 is connected to the enclosure of the MO beam steering unit 24A via bellows 25A, and is connected to the enclosure of the MO beam steering unit 24B via bellows 25B.
The optical isolator 90 needs to be so disposed that the pulse laser light passes through the Faraday material FM, the first polarizer 83, the Faraday material 85, and the second polarizer 88. On the other hand, the optical axis of the pulse laser light extending from the MO 22 toward the PO 26 varies from apparatus to apparatus. To handle the situation described above, the Faraday material FM large enough as compared with the cross section (beam cross section) of the pulse laser light, the first polarizer 83, the Faraday material 85, and the second polarizer 88 are disposed in the optical isolator 90.
However, an increase in the sizes of the Faraday materials FM and 85 increases the sizes of the magnets MG and 86, which apply uniform magnetic fields thereto. Since the magnets MG and 86 are each heavy, the optical isolator 90, in which the two magnets MG and 86 are disposed, is heavy and has poor maintainability.
The problem described above is not limited to the optical isolator 90 shown in
4.1 Configuration
The optical isolator 110 includes Faraday rotators 120 and 122 in place of the Faraday rotators 91 and 84 in
The smaller the cross-sectional shape of a magnetic field generation region 142, where the Faraday material 130 is disposed, the smaller the magnet 140 of the Faraday rotator 120 can be. The pulse laser light PL output from the MO 22 has a cross-sectional shape having a major axis (rectangular shape, for example), so that the magnetic field generation region 142 having a cross-sectional shape having a major axis and a minor axis perpendicular to and shorter than the major axis is more effective in reducing the size of the magnet 140.
Therefore, in the optical isolator 110, the Faraday material 130 has a cross-sectional shape having a major axis in the same direction as the direction of the major axis of the cross-sectional shape of the pulse laser light PL, and having a shortest possible minor axis. Furthermore, the magnetic field generation region 142 of the magnet 140 has a cross-sectional shape having a major axis in the same direction as the direction of the major axis of the cross-sectional shape of the Faraday material 130 in accordance with the cross-sectional shape of the Faraday material 130.
Thereafter, to handle a case where the optical axis of the pulse laser light PL deviates from a design value, the optical isolator 110 accommodates a position adjustment mechanism that adjusts the position of the Faraday material 130 by moving the Faraday material 130 in the direction parallel to the minor axis (minor-axis direction). An example of the configuration of the position adjustment mechanism will be described later with reference to
The position adjustment mechanism may move the first polarizer 83 as well as the Faraday rotator 120. That is, the Faraday material 130 and the first polarizer 83 may be integrated with each other into an integral structure, and the Faraday material 130 and the first polarizer 83 may be moved as an integral part by the position adjustment mechanism.
The optical isolator 110 may further include a rotational mechanism that rotates the Faraday material 130 around the axis perpendicular to the optical axis of the pulse laser light PL and the direction of the minor axis of the Faraday material 130. An example of the configuration of the rotational mechanism will be described later with reference to
The Faraday material 130 has a cross-sectional shape having a major axis in the same direction as the direction of the major axis of the cross-sectional shape of the pulse laser light PL, and larger than the cross-sectional shape of the pulse laser light PL. The Faraday material 130 shown in
The difference (LFMz-LPLz) between the length LFMz of the minor axis of the Faraday material 130 and the length LPLz of the minor axis of the pulse laser light PL may, for example, range from about 2 to 4 mm. The difference (LFMh-LPLh) between the length LFMh of the major axis of the Faraday material 130 and the length LPLh of the major axis of the pulse laser light PL may, for example, range from about 3 to 5 mm. Since the Faraday material 130 is movable in the direction of the minor axis, the difference in the length of the minor axis (LFMz-LPLz) may be smaller than the difference in the length of the major axis (LFMh-LPLh).
The magnetic field generation region 142, where the Faraday material 130 is disposed, has a cross-sectional shape having a major axis in the same direction as the direction of the major axis of the cross-sectional shape of the Faraday material 130. The magnetic field generation region 142 shown in
A length LMGh of the major axis of the magnetic field generation region 142 is greater than or equal to the length LFMh of the major axis of the Faraday material 130, and actually greater than or equal to the length of the Faraday material holder 132 in the H direction. The difference (LMGh-LFMh) between the length LMGh of the major axis of the magnetic field generation region 142 and the length LFMh of the major axis of the Faraday material 130 may be greater than the difference (LMGz-LFMz) between LMGz and LFMz in the direction of the minor axis.
As a specific example of the dimensions, for example, when the length LPLz of the minor axis of the cross section of the pulse laser light PL is 2 mm and the length LPLh of the major axis is 12 mm, it is preferable that the length LFMz of the minor axis of the Faraday material 130 ranges from 4 mm to 6 mm, and that the length LFMh of the major axis of the Faraday material 130 ranges from 15 mm to 17 mm. In this case, it is preferable that the length LMGz of the minor axis of the magnetic field generation region 142 ranges from 4 mm to 7 mm, and that the length LMGh of the major axis of the magnetic field generation region 142 is greater than or equal to 17 mm.
The Faraday rotator 122 may also have the same configuration as that of the Faraday rotator 120. The Faraday material 130, the Faraday material holder 132, the magnet 140, and the magnetic field generation region 142 shown in
The Faraday material 130, the Faraday material holder 132, and the magnet 140 of the Faraday rotator 120; a polarizer holder 146; and the first polarizer 83 constitute a magnet block MGB1 in the form of an integral structure. Out of the members that constitute the magnet block MGB1, the members excluding the magnet 140 are made of non-magnetic materials. The non-magnetic materials may, for example, be copper-based, aluminum-based, and austenitic stainless steel. The first polarizer 83 is integrated with the Faraday rotator 120 with the first polarizer 83 held by the polarizer holder 146. The Faraday material 130 is disposed in the magnetic field generation region 142 of the magnet 140 with the Faraday material 130 held by the Faraday material holder 132.
Similarly, a Faraday material 150, a Faraday material holder 152, and a magnet 160 of the Faraday rotator 122; a polarizer holder 166; and the second polarizer 88 constitute a magnet block MGB2 in the form of an integral structure. Out of the members that constitute the magnet block MGB2, the members excluding the magnet 160 are made of non-magnetic materials. The second polarizer 88 is integrated with the Faraday rotator 122 with the second polarizer 88 held by the polarizer holder 166. The Faraday material 150 is disposed in a magnetic field generation region 162 of the magnet 160 with the Faraday material 150 held by the Faraday material holder 152.
The magnet block MGB1 and the magnet block MGB2 are disposed in the sealable isolator enclosure 96. The surface having an opening of the isolator enclosure 96 that opens in the H direction is covered with an isolator lid 98. The interface between the isolator enclosure 96 and the isolator lid 98 is sealed with an O-ring 97. The isolator lid 98 has through holes 99a and 99b; a slide plate 170 is inserted into the through hole 99a, and a slide plate 180 is inserted into the through hole 99b. The through holes 99a and 99b are elongated in the Z direction, and the slide plate 170 is fixed to the isolator lid 98 so as to be slidable in the Z direction along the through hole 99a. Through holes 171, through which fixing screws that are not shown pass, are formed, for example, at the four corners of the slide plate 170, and the fixing screws fix the slide plate 170 to the isolator lid 98. The through holes 171 may also each be an oval elongated in the Z direction. The isolator lid 98 is provided with a direction-Z adjustment screw 172, which causes the slide plate 170 to slide in the Z direction.
The magnet block MGB1 is supported by the slide plate 170 via a shaft 174, as shown in
The interface between the shaft 174 and the slide plate 170 is sealed with an O-ring 178, and the interface between the slide plate 170 and the isolator lid 98 is sealed with an O-ring 179.
The configurations of the magnet block MGB2, the slide plate 180, a shaft 184, a through-hole 185, and a handle 186 are the same, for example, as the magnet block MGB1 and the like. The slide plate 180 is fixed to the isolator lid 98 so as to be slidable in the Z direction along the through hole 99b. Through holes 181 of the slide plate 180 may each be a hole elongated in the Z direction, and the isolator lid 98 is provided with a direction-Z adjustment screw 182, which causes the slide plate 180 to slide in the Z direction.
The interface between the shaft 184 and the slide plate 180 is sealed with an O-ring 188, and the interface between the slide plate 180 and the isolator lid 98 is sealed with an O-ring 189.
The Faraday materials 130 and 150 may, for example, be calcium fluoride (CaF2) crystal.
The isolator enclosure 96 is provided with an inlet 190 and an introduction port 191, via which a purge gas is introduced into the isolator enclosure 96, and an outlet 194 and an exhaust port 195, via which the purge gas is exhausted out of the isolator enclosure 96.
4.2 Operation
The Faraday material 130, the first polarizer 83, the Faraday material 150, and the second polarizer 88 are disposed at design positions in the isolator enclosure 96 of the optical isolator 110.
The optical isolator 110 is positioned by a positioning pin that is not shown and disposed at a frame that is not shown but is a portion of the ultraviolet laser apparatus 21.
An example of an adjustment procedure after the optical isolator 110 is disposed in the ultraviolet laser apparatus 21 is shown below.
[Step 1] A photosensor PS that is not shown, such as a power meter, is attached to the location of the bellows 25B.
[Step 2] The MO 22 is caused to perform laser oscillation and the direction-Z adjustment screw 172 is turned to move the magnet block MGB1, the shaft 174, the slide plate 170, and the handle 176 in the Z direction, and fixed at a position where the power detected by the photosensor PS is maximized.
[Step 3] In addition to adjustment of the position in the Z direction in step 2, the handle 176 may further be turned around an axis parallel to the H axis and fixed at a position where the power detected by the photosensor PS is maximized.
[Step 4] The magnet block MGB2 is adjusted in the same manner.
[Step 5] Thereafter, the photosensor PS is removed, and the bellows 25B is installed.
[Step 6] A purge gas may be introduced into the isolator enclosure 96 through the inlet 190 via the introduction port 191 and exhausted via the exhaust port 195 through the outlet 194. Instead, the purge gas may be introduced through the bellows 25A and exhausted through the bellows 25B with none of the inlet 190, the introduction port 191, the outlet 194, and the exhaust port 195 provided. The purge gas may be caused to flow in the direction opposite to the direction described above. The purge gas may, for example, be nitrogen. The nitrogen is an example of the “gas” in the present disclosure. The bellows 25A and 25B can be an example of the “inlet” and the “outlet” in the present disclosure.
The function of the Faraday rotator 120 is the same as that of the half-wave plate 81 in
The position adjustment mechanism that includes the slide plate 180 and the direction-Z adjustment screw 182 and moves the magnet block MGB2 in the Z direction is an example of the “first position adjustment mechanism” in the present disclosure. The slide plate 180 is an example of the “first slide plate” in the present disclosure, and the direction-Z adjustment screw 182 is an example of the “first adjustment screw” in the present disclosure. The rotational mechanism that includes the shaft 184 and the handle 186 and rotates the magnet block MGB2 around an axis of rotation parallel to the H direction is an example of the “first rotational mechanism” in the present disclosure. The shaft 184 is an example of the “first shaft” in the present disclosure. The rotational direction (clockwise direction in
The Faraday rotator 120 is an example of the “second Faraday rotator” in the present disclosure, and the Faraday material 130, the magnet 140, and the magnetic field generation region 142 are examples of the “second Faraday material”, the “second magnet”, and the “second magnetic field generation region” in the present disclosure. The magnetic field generated by the magnet 140 in the magnetic field generation region 142 is an example of the “second magnetic field” in the present disclosure.
The position adjustment mechanism that includes the slide plate 170 and the direction-Z adjustment screw 172 and moves the magnet block MGB1 in the Z direction is an example of the “second position adjustment mechanism” in the present disclosure. The slide plate 170 is an example of the “second slide plate” in the present disclosure, and the direction-Z adjustment screw 172 is an example of the “second adjustment screw” in the present disclosure. The rotational mechanism that includes the shaft 174 and the handle 176 and rotates the magnet block MGB1 around an axis of rotation parallel to the H direction is an example of the “second rotational mechanism” in the present disclosure. The shaft 174 is an example of the “second shaft” in the present disclosure. The rotational direction (counterclockwise direction in
4.3 Effects and Advantages
The optical isolator 110 according to the first embodiment employs the configuration in which the Faraday materials 130 and 150 each have a cross-sectional shape having a major axis and a shortest possible minor axis, and the magnetic field generation regions 142 and 162 of the magnets 140 and 160 each accordingly have a cross-sectional shape having a major axis in the same direction as that of the Faraday material, so that the sizes of the magnets 140 and 160 can be efficiently reduced.
In the optical isolator 110 according to the first embodiment, when the optical axis of the pulse laser light PL traveling from the MO 22 toward the PO 26 deviates from a design value, the position adjustment mechanism including the direction-Z adjustment screws 172 and 182 can adjust the pulse laser light PL in such a way that the pulse laser light PL passes through the Faraday materials 130 and 150.
Reducing the sizes of the magnets 140 and 160 reduces the weight of the optical isolator 110 accordingly, so that the maintainability thereof is improved.
4.4 Modification 1
When it is not necessary to adjust the polarization direction of the pulse laser light PL output from the MO 22 to be the same as the polarization direction of the pulse laser light PL incident on the PO 26, the Faraday rotator 120 may not be disposed, and the optical isolator 111 shown in
In the optical isolator 111, the first polarizer 83; a polarizer holder 147; the Faraday material 150, the Faraday material holder 152, and the magnet 160 of the Faraday rotator 122; the polarizer holder 166; and the second polarizer 88 constitute the magnet block MGB2 in the form an integral structure.
The first polarizer 83 held by the polarizer holder 147 is integrated with the Faraday rotator 122. The other configurations may be the same as those of the optical isolator 110 according to the first embodiment.
4.5 Modification 2
The optical isolator 112 does not include the second polarizer 88 or the polarizer holder 166. The other configurations are the same as those of the optical isolator 111 shown in
4.6 Modification 3
4.6.1 Configuration
The optical isolator 113 includes an optical axis shift canceler 201, which is disposed on the optical path between the first polarizer 83 and the Faraday rotator 122, and an optical axis shift canceler 202 disposed on the optical path between the second polarizer 88 and the bellows 25B. The optical axis shift canceler 202 is disposed at the side closer to the PO 26 than the second polarizer 88, that is, at the light exiting side of the second polarizer 88 on the optical path of the pulse laser light PL output from the Faraday rotator 122 and traveling toward the second polarizer 88.
The optical axis shift cancelers 201 and 202 may each, for example, be a parallel flat plate made of calcium fluoride. The optical axis shift canceler 201 is an example of the “first optical axis shift canceler” in the present disclosure. The optical axis shift canceler 202 is an example of the “second optical axis shift canceler” in the present disclosure.
The optical axis shift canceler 201 may be disposed in the polarizer holder 146 of the magnet block MGB1. The optical axis shift canceler 202 may be disposed in the polarizer holder 166 of the magnet block MGB2.
4.6.2 Operation
The optical axis of the pulse laser light PL output from the MO 22 is offset before and after the pulse laser light PL passes through the first polarizer 83. The disposed optical axis shift canceler 201 cancels the offset.
Similarly, the optical axis of the pulse laser light PL output from the MO 22 is offset before and after the pulse laser light PL passes through the second polarizer 88. The disposed optical axis shift canceler 202 cancels the offset. In the configuration in which the second polarizer 88 is not disposed, the optical axis shift canceler 202 is also unnecessary.
4.6.3 Effects and Advantages
The optical isolator 113 according to Modification 3, in which the optical axis shift canceler 201 is disposed, causes the optical axis of the pulse laser light PL passing through the Faraday material 130 to coincide with the optical axis of the pulse laser light PL passing through the Faraday material 150.
Furthermore, disposing the optical axis shift canceler 202 causes the optical axis of the pulse laser light PL passing through the Faraday material 130 to coincide with the optical axis of the pulse laser light PL output from the optical isolator 113 toward the PO 26. The other effects and advantages are the same as those provided by the first embodiment.
5.1 Configuration
In the optical isolator 114, a slide plate 210, which functions both as the slide plates 170 and 180, is disposed in place of the slide plates 170 and 180 in the optical isolator 110. The slide plate 210 has through holes 211 in place of the through holes 171 and 181. The other configurations may be the same as those in the first embodiment.
5.2 Operation
The adjustment of the slide plate 210 in the Z direction is performed by using the direction-Z adjustment screws 172 and 182. The adjustment of the slide plate 210 in the Z direction may instead be performed by using only one of the direction-Z adjustment screws 172 and 182. The other operations are the same as those in the first embodiment.
The slide plate 210 is an example of the “third slide plate” in the present disclosure.
5.3 Effects and Advantages
The optical isolator 114 according to the second embodiment allows, in addition to providing the effects and advantages provided by the first embodiment, the adjustment to be performed without disturbing the relative positional relationship between the two magnet blocks MGB1 and MGB2, so that the adjustment period can be shortened.
6. Another Example of Configuration of Ultraviolet Laser Apparatus
The oscillation-stage laser is not limited to a narrowed-line gas laser, such as the MO 22 shown in
The amplification-stage laser is not limited to the configuration including a Fabry-Perot type resonator, such as the PO 26 shown in
7. Electronic Device Manufacturing Method
The exposure apparatus 300 translates the reticle stage RT and the workpiece table WT in synchronization with each other to expose the workpiece to the laser light having reflected the reticle pattern. Semiconductor devices can be manufactured by transferring the reticle pattern onto the semiconductor wafer in the exposure step described above and then carrying out a plurality of other steps. The semiconductor devices are an example of the “electronic devices” in the present disclosure.
8. Others
The description above is intended to be illustrative and the present disclosure is not limited thereto. Therefore, it would be obvious to those skilled in the art that various modifications to the embodiments of the present disclosure would be possible without departing from the spirit and the scope of the appended claims. Further, it would be also obvious for those skilled in the art that embodiments of the present disclosure would be appropriately combined.
The terms used throughout the present specification and the appended claims should be interpreted as non-limiting terms. For example, terms such as “comprise”, “include”, “have”, and “contain” should not be interpreted to be exclusive of other structural elements. Further, indefinite articles “a/an” described in the present specification and the appended claims should be interpreted to mean “at least one” or “one or more”. Further, “at least one of A, B, and C” should be interpreted to mean any of A, B, C, A+B, A+C, B+C, and A+B+C as well as to include combinations of any thereof and any other than A, B, and C.
The present application is a continuation application of International Application No. PCT/JP2021/026593, filed on Jul. 15, 2021, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
Parent | PCT/JP2021/026593 | Jul 2021 | US |
Child | 18531775 | US |