Position detector employing a sector fresnel zone plate

Claim 2

A position detector for use in an X ray exposure apparatus for detecting a relative position between first and second object bodies having respective planar surfaces which are substantially parallel to each other and which are minutely spaced in the direction of a normal to the surfaces of said bodies, the relative position being in the direction perpendicular to said normal; comprising: first and second sector Fresnel zone plates (SFZP) on which respective alignment marks are formed and which are disposed respectively on said first and second object bodies; illuminating means provided on one side of said normal and at an angle with respect thereto for illuminating said first and second SFZPs with a ray of light of a single wavelength; detection means including an objective lens disposed on the opposite side of said normal at the same angle with respect thereto as said illuminating means for detecting Fresnel diffraction images formed by said alignment marks to said single wavelength ray; said first and second SFZPs being constructed such that a principal focal plane of a Fresnel diffraction image caused by said first SFZP to said single wavelength rays agrees with a principal focal plane of a Fresnel diffraction image caused by said second SFZP to said single wavelength ray and said principal focal planes in agreement with each other agrees with a focal plane of said detection means; transducer means disposed on an image forming plane of said detection means for converting a Fresnel diffraction image formed in a straight line by said first and second SFZPs into an electrical signal by linearly scanning said Fresnel diffraction image in the direction perpendicular to the image; and signal handling means for handling said electrical signal obtained by said transducer means to detect a relative position between said alignment marks in the direction perpendicular to said normal.

Claim 3

A position detector according to claim 1 in which said first object body is a mask and said second object body is a wafer.

Claim 4

A position detector according to claim 1 in which said first SFZP is disposed between a pair of said second SFZPs.

Claim 5

A position detector according to claim 1 in which said second SFZP is disposed between a pair of said first SFZPs.

Claim 6

A position detector according to claim 1 in which said first SFZP is disposed over said second SFZP.

Claim 7

A position detector according to claim 1 in which said first SFZP is provided with a transparent window zone through which said ray of light from said illuminating means passes and is incident upon said second SFZP and is diffracted therefrom, said diffracted ray passing through said window to said detection means.

Claim 8

A position detector according to claim 1 in which said ray of a single wavelength is coherent ray of bright line with a reduced half width selected from the group consisting of a laser ray of He-Ne of a wavelength of 633 nm, a laser ray of Ar of a wavelength of 488 nm and a laser ray of green He-Ne of a wavelength of 543.5 nm.

Claim 9

A position detector according to claim 1 in which said illumination means and detection means are arranged such that an illumination optical axis angle of said illumination means whose optical axis makes with the surface of the alignment mark is equal to a detection optical axis angle of said detection means whose optical axis makes with the surface of the alignment mark at the opposite sides of the normal of the surface.

Claim 10

A position detector according to claim 8 in which said illumination angle is in a range of 45° to 80°.

Claim 11

A position detector according to claim 1 in which said detection means is a general magnifying optical system comprising an objective lens and a relay lens.

Claim 12

A position detector according to claim 10 in which said objective lens is one of an apochromatic or a chromatic system in which an aberration is properly compensated.

Claim 13

A position detector according to claim 1 in which said transducer means is a one dimensional solid-state CCD camera.

Claim 14

A position detector according to claim 1 in which said signal handling means employs a similar pattern matching method.

Claim 15

A position detector for use in an X ray exposure apparatus for detecting a relative position between first and second object bodies having respective planar surfaces which are substantially parallel to each other and which are minutely spaced in the direction of a normal to the surfaces of said bodies, the relative position being in the direction perpendicular to said normal; comprising: first and second Fresnel's zone plate (SFZP) on which respective alignment marks are formed and which are disposed respectively on said first and second object bodies; illumination means disposed on one side of said normal and at an angle with respect thereto for simultaneously illuminating said first and second SFZPs with rays of a plurality of wavelengths from the same direction; said first and second SFZPs being constructed such that a principal focal plane formed by Fresnel diffraction from said first SFZP, which plane lies at a different position to each of said rays of said plurality of wavelengths, agrees with a principal focal plane formed by Fresnel diffraction from said second SFZP, which plane lies at a different position to each of said rays of said plurality of wavelengths, with respect to a ray of at least one of said plurality of wavelengths; detection means disposed on the opposite side of said normal at the same angle with respect thereto as said illuminating means and including an objective lens having such an axial chromatic aberration that its focal planes to said rays of said plurality of wavelengths agree with respective principal focal planes formed by Fresnel diffraction from said second SFZP, which planes lie at different positions to said rays of plurality of wavelengths, for detecting Fresnel diffraction images formed by said alignment marks to said rays of said plurality of wavelengths; transducer means disposed on an image forming plane of said detection means for converting a Fresnel diffraction image in a straight line formed by said first and second SFZPs into an electrical signal by linearly scanning said Fresnel diffraction image in the direction perpendicular to the image; and signal handling means for handling said electrical signal obtained by said transducer means to detect a relative position between said alignment marks in the direction perpendicular to said normal.

Claim 16

A position detector for use in an X ray exposure apparatus for detecting a relative position between first and second object bodies having respective planar surfaces which are substantially parallel to each other and which are minutely spaced in the direction of a normal to the surfaces of said bodies, the relative position being in the direction perpendicular to said normal; comprising: first and second Fresnel's zone plate (SFZP) on which respective alignment marks are formed and which are disposed respectively on said first and second object bodies; illumination means disposed on one side of said normal and at an angle with respect thereto for simultaneously illuminating said first and second SFZPs with rays of a plurality of wavelengths from the same direction; said first and second SFZPs being constructed such that a principal focal plane formed by Fresnel diffraction from said first SFZP, which plane lies at a different position to each of said rays of said plurality of wavelengths, agrees with a principal focal plane formed by Fresnel diffraction from said second SFZP, which plane lies at a different position to each of said rays of said plurality of wavelengths, with respect to a ray of at least one of said plurality of wavelengths; detection means disposed on the opposite side of said normal at the same angle with respect thereto as said illuminating means and including an objective lens having such an axial chromatic aberration that its focal planes to said rays of said plurality of wavelengths agree with respective principal focal planes formed by Fresnel diffraction from said second SFZP, which planes lie at different positions to said rays of plurality of wavelengths, for detecting Fresnel diffraction images formed by said alignment marks to said rays of said plurality of wavelengths; transducer means disposed on an image forming plane of said detection means for converting a Fresnel diffraction image in a straight line formed by said first and second SFZPs into an electrical signal by linearly scanning said Fresnel diffraction image in the direction perpendicular to the image; and signal handling means for handling said electrical signal obtained by said transducer means to detect a relative position between said alignment marks in the direction perpendicular to said normal.

Claim 17

A position detector according to claim 14 in which said first object body is a mask and said second object body is a wafer.

Claim 18

A position detector according to claim 14 in which said first SFZP is disposed between a pair of said second SFZPs.

Claim 19

A position detector according to claim 14 in which said second SFZP is disposed between a pair of said first SFZPs.

Claim 20

A position detector according to claim 14 in which said first SFZP is disposed over said second SFZP.

Claim 21

A position detector according to claim 14 in which said first SFZP is provided with a transparent window zone through which said ray from said illuminating means passes and is incident upon second SFZP and is diffracted therefrom, said diffracted ray passing through said window to said detection means.

Claim 22

A position detector according to claim 14 in which said illumination means employs a coherent laser ray of bright line with a reduced half width.

Claim 23

A position detector according to claim 14 in which said illumination means and detection means are arranged such that an illumination optical axis angle of said illumination means whose optical axis makes with the surface of the alignment mark is equal to a detection optical axis angle of said detection means whose optical axis makes with the surface of the alignment mark at the opposite sides of the normal of the surface.

Claim 24

A position detector according to claim 19 in which said illumination angle is in a range of 45° to 80°.

Claim 25

A position detector according to claim 14 in which said detection means comprises an objective lens having an axial chromatic aberration and relay lens.

Claim 26

A position detector according to claim 14 in which said transducer means is a one dimensional solid-stage CCD camera and a MOS type LSI.

Claim 27

A position detector according to claim 14 in which said signal handling means employs a similar pattern matching method.