Photocopying inventions 05/08

20080123065 - Method and device for manufacturing a hologram recording medium: Arrangements are made to enable different original images to be reproduced upon observation from different positions and yet enable reproduced images of high resolution to be obtained. Each of two original images Ia and Ib is defined as a set of point light sources such as P11 and P21 in... Agent: Ladas & Parry LLP

20080123068 - Exposure apparatus, exposure method, and device fabrication method: An exposure apparatus comprises an illumination optical system configured to illuminate a reticle with a light beam from a light source, a projection optical system configured to project a pattern of the reticle onto a substrate, a measurement unit configured to measure a light quantity distribution in an exposure area... Agent: Morgan & Finnegan, L.L.P.

20080123066 - Lithographic apparatus and device manufacturing method: A lithographic apparatus is disclosed that includes an optical arrangement having an array of optical elements arranged in a plane perpendicular to the radiation beam. Each optical element comprises an electrical heating device to change an optical path length of the radiation beam. By selectively actuating the electrical heating devices,... Agent: Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, LLP

20080123067 - Movable body system, exposure apparatus, and device manufacturing method: Stopper mechanisms keep a wafer table and a measurement table from moving closer than a predetermined distance, and the blocking by the stopper mechanisms can also be released by a drive mechanism. Therefore, for example, in the case X-axis stators are driven independently, even if at least one of the... Agent: Oliff & Berridge, PLC

20080123069 - Projection objective for a microlithographic projection exposure apparatus: A projection objective of a microlithographic projection exposure apparatus contains a plurality of optical elements arranged in N≧2 successive sections A1 to AN of the projection objective which are separated from one another by pupil planes or intermediate image planes. According to the invention, in order to correct a wavefront... Agent: Fish & Richardson PC

20080123071 - Lithographic apparatus, immersion projection apparatus and device manufacturing method: A control system configured to control a position of a fluid supply system, the fluid supply system constructed and arranged to supply a fluid between a substrate and a projection system, the substrate positioned with a substrate stage, the control system including a controller configured to determine a desired position... Agent: Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, LLP

20080123070 - Patterning method and computer readable medium therefor: In a patterning apparatus for forming a desired pattern on a surface of an object by exposing the surface of the object to light by using a plurality of spatial light modulation elements assigned to respective exposure areas defined along a relative moving direction of the object, predetermined areas which... Agent: Drinker Biddle & Reath (dc)

20080123072 - Projection head focus position measurement method and exposure method: The same test image pattern is projected onto different regions of a photosensitive material on a substrate by a projection head while one of a projection distance from the projection head to the photosensitive material and a focus position is changed. Accordingly, each of the regions of the photosensitive material... Agent: Sughrue Mion, PLLC

20080123073 - Optical element, exposure apparatus using the same, and device manufacturing method: There is disclosed an optical element, comprising, a supporting substrate, a multilayer film being supported on the substrate and reflecting extreme ultraviolet light, and an alloy layer provided between the multilayer film and the substrate.... Agent: Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner LLP

20080123074 - Projection optical system, exposure equipment and exposure method: A projection optical system is a system with good imaging performance based on well-balanced compensation for aberration associated with image height and aberration associated with numerical aperture, while ensuring a large effective image-side numerical aperture in the presence of a liquid in the optical path between the projection optical system... Agent: Oliff & Berridge, PLC

20080123075 - Exposure apparatus: An exposure apparatus includes a projection optical system for projecting light from a reticle onto a substrate, and exposes a shot region of the substrate to radiant energy via the reticle and the projection optical system. The exposure apparatus comprises a substrate stage configured to hold the substrate and to... Agent: Morgan & Finnegan, L.L.P.

20080117390 - Coating/developing apparatus and substrate transfer method: In a coating/developing apparatus, a process section includes post-exposure baking units each having a waiting position and configured to perform a baking process on a substrate. An interface section transfer mechanism includes a first transfer mechanism configured to transfer the substrate to and from the process section and to load... Agent: Oblon, Spivak, Mcclelland Maier & Neustadt, P.c.

20080117391 - Lithographic apparatus and device manufacturing method: A lithographic apparatus includes an illumination system configured to condition a radiation beam; a support constructed to support a patterning device, the patterning device being capable of imparting the radiation beam with a pattern in its cross-section to form a patterned radiation beam; a substrate table constructed to hold a... Agent: Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, LLP

20080117392 - Lithographic apparatus and device manufacturing method: Lithographic Apparatus and Device Manufacturing Method A system for tuning the refractive index of immersion liquid in an immersion lithographic apparatus is disclosed. Two or more immersion liquids of different refractive index are mixed together in order to achieve a desired refractive index. Further, the fluids may be conditioned and... Agent: Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, LLP

20080117396 - Exposure apparatus: The exposure apparatus includes: a light source which emits parallel light having a wavelength used for exposure; a photomask which includes a substrate, an optical shielding layer and an optical selective layer, the substrate being capable of transmitting the light of the wavelength, the optical shielding layer being made of... Agent: Birch Stewart Kolasch & Birch

20080117398 - Immersion exposure apparatus: A scanning immersion exposure apparatus includes a stage capable of delivering an area in contact with liquid to another member. The stage has a delivery portion configured to enable the area to the another member and one or more reference marks for positioning the stage with respect to a reticle.... Agent: Canon U.s.a. Inc. Intellectual Property Division

20080117397 - Optical devices having kinemtaic components: Optical devices that have at least one optical element and a plurality of kinematic components are disclosed. The number m of the kinematic components of one type exceed the number n of degrees of freedom in which the optical element can be manipulated. At least one of the n degrees... Agent: Fish & Richardson Pc

20080117395 - Stage apparatus and exposure apparatus: A stage apparatus includes: a moving stage, which moves along a movement plane; a first moving table, which holds a specimen while being able to move with respect to the moving stage; and a second moving table, which is provided on the moving stage and, when the first moving table... Agent: Oliff & Berridge, Plc

20080117399 - Enhancing the image contrast of a high resolution exposure tool: A system and method are utilized to equalize intensity or energy in various diffraction orders of a patterned beam. The patterned beam is formed using a diffractive patterning device. An attenuator is placed at a pupil of a projection system to attenuate respective diffraction orders of the patterned beam. The... Agent: Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.l.l.c.

20080117400 - Projection exposure apparatus, projection exposure method and projection objective: A projection exposure apparatus for the exposure of a radiation-sensitive substrate arranged in the region of an image surface of a projection objective with at least one image of a pattern of a mask that is arranged in the region of an object surface of the projection objective has a... Agent: Sughrue Mion, Pllc

20080117401 - Surface treatment method and surface treatment apparatus, exposure method and exposure apparatus, and device manufacturing method: A surface treatment method includes an operation which imparts energy to the object in a state where the surface of the object has been brought into contact with a prescribed fluid in order to reduce the surface energy of the object which has liquid repellency.... Agent: Oliff & Berridge, Plc

20080117402 - Lithographic apparatus and method: In an embodiment, a ring seal forming apparatus is disclosed, the apparatus including a substrate holder arranged to hold a substrate coated at least in part with resist, and a heating device configured to heat an area of the resist, relative movement between the substrate holder and heating device being... Agent: Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, LLP

20080117404 - Image forming apparatus: An image forming apparatus includes a main body portion having on an upper surface thereof a platen glass on which a document is placed, a pressing plate portion openable/closable with respect to the upper surface of the main body portion, and an operation unit enabling performance of an open/close operation... Agent: Murata Machinery, Ltd. (muratec) C/o Keating & Bennett LLP

20080117393 - Exposure apparatus and device fabricating method: The present invention provides an exposure apparatus can suppress the occurrence of residual liquid. An exposure apparatus comprises: a first stage that holds the substrate and is movable; a second stage that is movable independently of the first stage; and a liquid immersion mechanism that forms a liquid immersion region... Agent: Oliff & Berridge, Plc

20080117394 - Exposure method, substrate stage, exposure apparatus, and device manufacturing method: An exposure apparatus exposes a substrate by projecting a pattern image onto the substrate through a liquid. The exposure apparatus includes a projection optical system by which the pattern image is projected onto the substrate, and a movable member which is movable relative to the projection optical system. A liquid-repellent... Agent: Oliff & Berridge, Plc

20080117403 - Platen unit for a disposable camera having a printer: The invention relates to a platen unit for a disposable camera. The platen unit is configured for guiding print media under a printhead of an ink supply mechanism of the camera. The platen unit includes a platen base, a pinch roller attached to said base, and a cutting mechanism mounted... Agent: Silverbrook Research Pty Ltd

20080111977 - Compensation techniques for fluid and magnetic bearings: A system if used to compensate for guide flatness errors and/or shifting of a support. The system comprises one or more of the supports, an actuating system, the guide, a fluid or magnetic bearing, and a compensation system. The one or more support devices have one or more openings. The... Agent: Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.l.l.c.

20080111978 - Exposure apparatus and device manufacturing method: An exposure apparatus which prevents damages due to leaked out liquid from expanding and can maintain exposure accuracy and measuring accuracy. The exposure apparatus includes first and second stages (ST1, ST2) which can independently move within an XY-plane on an image plane side of a projection optical system (PL); a... Agent: Oliff & Berridge, Plc

20080111979 - Liquid-immersion exposure method and liquid-immersion exposure apparatus: In a liquid-immersion exposure method and a liquid-immersion exposure apparatus, on the basis of a liquid repellency distribution at a surface which an immersion liquid contacts as a result of a movement of a stage, a path where a movement time of the stage becomes the shortest is calculated, so... Agent: Canon U.s.a. Inc. Intellectual Property Division

20080111981 - Radiation beam pulse trimming: A system is used to perform fast and slow applications, for example fast application can be pulse trimming. The system includes a radiation source, an electro-optical modulator, and a beam splitter. The radiation source is configured to generate a polarized beam of radiation. The electro-optical modulator, formed of crystalline quartz,... Agent: Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.l.l.c.

20080111983 - Illumination system for a microlithographic projection exposure apparatus: An illumination system (12) of a microlithographic exposure system comprises a plurality of light emitting elements (24) that have light exit facets that are positioned in or in close proximity to a field plane (OP) or a pupil plane and are configured to be individually activated. Light collecting elements, for... Agent: Fish & Richardson Pc

20080111982 - Increasing pulse-to-pulse radiation beam uniformity: A system is used to substantially reduce divergence of a beam traveling between master and power oscillators, for example in a laser beam source. The system comprises the first and second oscillators and a beam conditioning device. The first oscillator is configured to generate a radiation beam. The beam conditioning... Agent: Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.l.l.c.

20080111984 - Substrate holding apparatus, exposure apparatus, and device fabrication method: To provide a substrate holding apparatus that can rapidly recover liquid that has infiltrated the rear surface side of a substrate. A substrate holding apparatus comprises: a base; a first support part, which is formed on the base and supports a rear surface of a substrate to be processed; a... Agent: Oliff & Berridge, Plc

20080111980 - Exposure apparatus equipped with interferometer and exposure apparatus using the same: An exposure apparatus includes a projection optical system for projecting an exposure pattern, onto an object to be exposed, and a measuring apparatus for measuring, as an interference fringe, optical performance of the projection optical system, wherein the measuring apparatus includes an optical element having opposing first and second surfaces,... Agent: Morgan & Finnegan, L.l.p.

20080106707 - Exposure apparatus, exposure method, and method for producing device: An exposure apparatus (EX) exposes a substrate (P) by irradiating exposure light (EL) on the substrate (P) through liquid (LQ). The exposure apparatus (EX) has a substrate holder (PH) for holding the substrate (P), a substrate stage (PST) capable of moving the substrate (P) held by the substrate holder (PH),... Agent: Oliff & Berridge, PLC

20080106710 - Immersion lithography system using a sealed wafer bath: Immersion lithography system and method using a sealed wafer bottom are described. One embodiment is an immersion lithography apparatus including a lens assembly comprising an imaging lens and a wafer stage for retaining a wafer beneath the lens assembly and comprising a seal ring for sealing a gap between a... Agent: Haynes And Boone, LLP

20080106712 - Liquid recovery member, substrate holding member, exposure apparatus and device manufacturing method: A substrate holding member includes: a first holding portion that detachably holds a substrate to be immersion exposed; and a second holding portion that detachably holds a liquid recovery member, the liquid recovery member including an opening portion in which a liquid having flowed out from an upper surface of... Agent: Oliff & Berridge, PLC

20080106709 - Method and apparatus for removing particles in immersion lithography: A method and system involve supplying an immersion fluid to a space between an imaging lens and a substrate to be patterned, generating an electric field in the immersion fluid within the space so that the electric field urges particles away from a surface of the substrate, removing the immersion... Agent: Haynes And Boone, LLP

20080106708 - Method and apparatus to prevent contamination of optical element by resist processing: A method and apparatus to eliminate contaminants in a lithography process for fabrication of integrated circuit devices. The method includes depositing a photoresist material on surface of a semiconductor substrate. A purge gas flow is provided proximate to an optical element to prevent a vapor from the exposed photoresist material... Agent: Townsend And Townsend And Crew, LLP

20080106711 - Projection lens system of a microlithographic projection exposure installation: A microlithographic projection exposure apparatus comprises a projection objective which images an object onto an image plane and has a lens with a curved surface. In the projection objective there is a liquid or solid medium which directly adjoins the curved surface over a region which is usable for imaging... Agent: Fish & Richardson PC

20080106714 - Alignment information display method and its program, alignment method, exposure method, device production process, display system, display device, and program and measurement/inspection system: [MEANS FOR SOLUTION] The alignment information display method of the present invention receives as input the data of the results of processing relating to alignment measurement, receives as input information relating to the parameters of the alignment measurement, finds the information for display from the data of the results of... Agent: Oliff & Berridge, PLC

20080106715 - Immersion lithography system using a sealed wafer bath: Immersion lithography system and method using a sealed wafer bottom are described. One embodiment is an immersion lithography apparatus comprising a lens assembly comprising an imaging lens and a wafer stage for retaining a wafer beneath the lens assembly, the wafer stage comprising a seal ring disposed on a seal... Agent: Haynes And Boone, LLP

20080106719 - Compensating masks, multi-optical systems using the masks, and methods of compensating for 3-d mask effect using the same: Provided are a compensating mask, a multi-optical system using the compensating mask, and a method of compensating for a 3-dimensional (3-D) mask effect using the compensating mask. Methods of compensating for a 3-D mask effect using a compensating mask may include generating a first kernel corresponding to a normal mask... Agent: Myers Bigel Sibley & Sajovec

20080106720 - Injection-locked laser, interferometer, exposure apparatus, and device manufacturing method: An injection-locked laser is disclosed. The injection-locked laser comprises a seed laser, an oscillator into which a certain component of light output from the seed laser is injected as seed laser light, a frequency converter which shifts a frequency of the remaining component of the light output from the seed... Agent: Morgan & Finnegan, L.L.P.

20080106721 - Exposure apparatus and device manufacturing method: An exposure apparatus which illuminates a reticle with illumination light from a light source and projects light from the reticle onto a substrate to expose the substrate to light is disclosed. The apparatus comprises a shutter located on a path of the illumination light, a detector configured to detect a... Agent: Morgan & Finnegan, L.L.P.

20080106713 - Immersion lithography apparatus and exposure method: An immersion lithography apparatus includes: a projection optical system which projects a pattern of a mask onto a substrate; a substrate cleaning unit which cleans the substrate prior to projection of the pattern; a liquid supply mechanism which supplies the same liquid to an immersion region between the projection optical... Agent: Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner LLP

20080106716 - Photomask, exposure method and apparatus that use the same, and semiconductor device: A photomask used in step-and-scan reduced projection exposure is provided with a substrate and a pattern formation area formed on the substrate. The pattern formation area has an unequal aspect dimensions and is a long rectangular shape in a scan direction. A first pattern width in the scan direction of... Agent: Mcginn Intellectual Property Law Group, PLLC

20080106717 - Using an interferometer as a high speed variable attenuator: A system and method provides high speed variable attenuators. The attenuators can be used within a lithographic apparatus to control intensity of radiation in one or more correction pulses used to correct a dose of the radiation following an initial pulse of radiation.... Agent: Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.l.l.c.

20080106718 - Exposure apparatus and device manufacturing method: An exposure apparatus emits exposure light onto a substrate (P) via a projection optical system (PL) to expose the substrate (P). The projection optical system (PL) includes a first optical element (LS1) closest to an image plane of the projection optical system (PL) and a second optical element (LS2) closest... Agent: Oliff & Berridge, PLC

20080106722 - Movable body drive system and movable body drive method, pattern formation apparatus and method, exposure apparatus and method, device manufacturing method, and decision-making method: A drive unit drives a wafer table in a Y-axis direction based on a measurement value of an encoder that measures position information of the wafer table in the Y-axis direction and based on known correction information in accordance with position information of the wafer table in a non-measurement direction... Agent: Oliff & Berridge, PLC

20080106723 - Substrate placement in immersion lithography: A method for determining an offset between a center of a substrate and a center of a depression in a chuck includes providing a test substrate to the depression, the test substrate having a dimension smaller than a dimension of the depression, measuring a position of an alignment mark of... Agent: Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, LLP

20080100811 - Exposure apparatus and device manufacturing method: To provide an exposure apparatus that allows an understanding of the condition of the apparatus and that can prevent a leakage or scattering of a liquid. The exposure apparatus (EX) includes a display apparatus (D) that indicates at least one of a status of filling of an optical path space... Agent: Miles & Stockbridge PC

20080100810 - Exposure apparatus, supply method and recovery method, exposure method, and device producing method: The present invention provides an exposure apparatus that can prevent the degradation of exposure and measurement accuracies. An exposure apparatus (EX) exposes a substrate (P) by irradiating the substrate (P) with exposure light (EL) through a projection optical system (PL) and a liquid (LQ), and comprises: a liquid supply mechanism... Agent: Staas & Halsey

20080100812 - Immersion lithography system and method having a wafer chuck made of a porous material: An immersion lithography apparatus having a substrate chuck made of a porous material. The porous substrate chuck is provided to contact and support the back surface of the substrate and hold the substrate in place. The porous substrate chuck facilitates in the removal of any immersion liquid under the substrate.... Agent: Oliff & Berridge, PLC

20080100814 - Reticle management systems and methods: Reticle management systems and methods. The system comprises at least one reticle and at least one cabinet with an inert gas environment. The cabinet comprises a plurality of storage spaces. When the reticle is put in a storage space, the cabinet identifies the reticle and the storage space occupied thereby.... Agent: Thomas, Kayden, Horstemeyer & Risley LLP

20080100816 - Lithographic apparatus and method: An illuminator for a lithographic apparatus is disclosed, the illuminator including an array of individually controllable reflective elements capable of changing the angular intensity distribution of an incident illumination beam of radiation, wherein the array of individually controllable reflective elements is provided on a curved support structure, or the array... Agent: Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, LLP

20080100818 - Lithographic apparatus and method: In a lithographic apparatus, a slip of a patterning device relative to a support, the support constructed to support the patterning device, may be provided by measuring a position of the support relative to a first structure of the lithographic apparatus; measuring a position of the patterning device relative to... Agent: Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, LLP

20080100819 - Lithographic apparatus and method: In a lithographic apparatus, a slip of a patterning device relative to a support, the support being constructed to support the patterning device, may be provided by: measuring a position of the support relative to a structure of the lithographic apparatus; measuring a position of the patterning device relative to... Agent: Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, LLP

20080100809 - Wet processing system, wet processing method and storage medium: A wet processing system detects a globule of a process solution in a drippy or dripping state from the tip of any one of process solution pouring nozzles being moved to a pouring position for pouring the process solution onto a substrate by obtaining image data on the process solution... Agent: Oblon, Spivak, Mcclelland Maier & Neustadt, P.C.

20080100813 - Cleanup method for optics in immersion lithography: A liquid immersion exposure apparatus includes an optical system via which a substrate is exposed with an exposure beam, and a cleaning device which performs a cleaning operation by filling a space adjacent the optical system with a liquid including bubbles.... Agent: Oliff & Berridge, PLC

20080100815 - Arrangement of two connected bodies: Arrangements of a first body and a second body connected to the first body, as well as related systems and methods, are disclosed. The arrangements, systems and methods can be used, for example, with optical devices, such as in the field of microlithography systems used to manufacture of microelectronic devices.... Agent: Fish & Richardson PC

20080100817 - Printing a mask with maximum possible process window through adjustment of the source distribution: Disclosed is a method for illuminating a lithographic mask with light from different directions, in such a way that the intensities of the various incident beams provide the largest possible integrated process window. The process window is defined in terms of allowable ranges for printed shapes. For example, boundaries of... Agent: Harrington & Smith, PC