Ultrahigh-repetition-rate ArF excimer laser with long pulse duration for 193-nm lithography

Kouji Kakizaki; Takashi Matsunaga; Yoichi Sasaki; Toyoharu Inoue; Satoshi Tanaka; Akifumi Tada; Hiroaki Taniguchi; Motohiro Arai; Tatsushi Igarashi

doi:10.1117/12.435656

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14 September 2001 Ultrahigh-repetition-rate ArF excimer laser with long pulse duration for 193-nm lithography

Kouji Kakizaki, Takashi Matsunaga, Yoichi Sasaki, Toyoharu Inoue, Satoshi Tanaka, Akifumi Tada, Hiroaki Taniguchi, Motohiro Arai, Tatsushi Igarashi

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Proceedings Volume 4346, Optical Microlithography XIV; (2001) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.435656
Event: 26th Annual International Symposium on Microlithography, 2001, Santa Clara, CA, United States

Abstract

High-repetition-rate ArF excimer lasers are needed to enable high throughput and energy-dose stability in 193-nm scanner systems. Last year we described a 4-kHz ArF excimer laser with long pulse duration, which can narrow the spectral bandwidth by increasing the number of round trips and reduce optical damage from low-peak power. The design of the 4-kHz ArF excimer laser has been improved for mass production. Operating rates exceeding 4 kHz are needed to optimize lasers for next-generation technologies that can enable high NA and the development of high-throughput scanners. We have analyzed the possibilities of achieving repetition rates higher than 4 kHz. The discharge width was reduced by about 25 % with a variation of the electric field at the discharge section, and the gas flow and gas-mixture conditions were improved. As a result, we obtained the following performance characteristics: 42-W average power, 3.5 % pulse-to-pulse energy stability of sigma, and a 44-ns integral-square pulse width at 6 kHz with a bandwidth of below 0.45 pm in FWHM. We concluded that developing 6-kHz ArF excimer lasers for next-generation 193-nm lithography is feasible.

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Kouji Kakizaki, Takashi Matsunaga, Yoichi Sasaki, Toyoharu Inoue, Satoshi Tanaka, Akifumi Tada, Hiroaki Taniguchi, Motohiro Arai, and Tatsushi Igarashi "Ultrahigh-repetition-rate ArF excimer laser with long pulse duration for 193-nm lithography", Proc. SPIE 4346, Optical Microlithography XIV, (14 September 2001); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.435656

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