System and Method to Adaptively Pre-Compensate for Target Material Push-Out to Optimize Extreme Ultraviolet Light Production

• Main Authors: GRAHAM MATTHEW R, VAN DER BURGT JEROEN, DUNSTAN WAYNE J, KINNEY CHARLES
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 14.07.2016
• Subjects: APPARATUS SPECIALLY ADAPTED THEREFOR; CINEMATOGRAPHY; ELECTRIC TECHNIQUES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; ELECTRICITY; ELECTROGRAPHY; HOLOGRAPHY; MATERIALS THEREFOR; ORIGINALS THEREFOR; PHOTOGRAPHY; PHOTOMECHANICAL PRODUCTION OF TEXTURED OR PATTERNED SURFACES,e.g. FOR PRINTING, FOR PROCESSING OF SEMICONDUCTORDEVICES; PHYSICS; PLASMA TECHNIQUE; PRODUCTION OF ACCELERATED ELECTRICALLY-CHARGED PARTICLES OR OFNEUTRONS; PRODUCTION OR ACCELERATION OF NEUTRAL MOLECULAR OR ATOMICBEAMS

Energy output from a laser-produced plasma (LPP) extreme ultraviolet light (EUV) system varies based on how well the laser beam is focused on droplets of target material to generate plasma at a primary focal spot. Maintaining droplets at the primary focal spot during burst firing is difficult because generated plasma from preceding droplets push succeeding droplets out of the primary focal spot. Current droplet-to-droplet feedback control to re-align droplets to the primary focal spot is relatively slow. The system and method described herein adaptively pre-compensate for droplet push-out by directing droplets to a target position that is offset from the primary focal spot such that when a droplet is lased, the droplet is pushed by the laser beam into the primary focal spot to generate plasma. Over time, the EUV system learns to maintain real-time alignment of droplet position so plasma is generated consistently within the primary focal spot.