Fast Wafer Edge Gripper with optional Top Loader for handling warped wafers and Faster Wafer Exchange by a top side Wafer Handler with bottom clamping

摘要

A lithographic apparatus is a machine that applies a desired pattern onto a substrate, usually onto a portion of the substrate. A lithographic apparatus can be used, for example, in the manufacture of integrated circuits (ICs). In lithographic processes, it is desirable frequently to make measurements of the structures created, e.g., for process control and verification. Such lithographic processes may require frequent wafer exchange, for example, moving an exposed wafer from a lithographic apparatus to a metrology or inspection apparatus. Driven by the growing demand of manufacturing modern integrated circuits with ever shrinking sizes, lithographic technologies that can offer higher resolution, belter reliability and higher throughput are under a fast-paced and extensive development. One of such advancing lithographic technologies is the extreme ultra-violet lithography (also known as EUV or EUVL), which allows for sub-10 nanometre (nm) scale resolution. Inevitably, the development of these cutting edge technologies will need to overcome numerous technical challenges. One of the technical challenges is to improve the speed and/or position accuracy for wafer exchange.