Paper
23 March 2020 Particle contamination control by application of plasma
Author Affiliations +
Abstract
With the introduction of Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) lithography, the control of contamination has become crucial. Sources for contamination in EUV lithography scanners are not limited to only particle generation and release inside the scanner environment but may be introduced from outside as well, e.g. through translational and/or rotational (robotic) feedthroughs.

In this contribution we highlight our joint (TU/e and VDL ETG) research efforts aimed at the development of plasma-enabled contamination control strategies. The focus in this research is on airborne particles immersed in a low pressure gas flow that interact with both the afterglow of a plasma and an externally applied electric field.

A flexible experimental setup has been developed and will be introduced which is able to study the interaction between contaminants, plasmas and externally applied electric fields. Our results show that the designed configuration allows to carefully control the residual charges of the particles as well as their positions and trajectories with respect to the gas flow in which they are immersed. These results, together with the understanding of the underlying principle processes, open-up various possibilities to achieve improved cleanliness of the mentioned systems.
© (2020) COPYRIGHT Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE). Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Job Beckers, Boy van Minderhout, Paul Blom, Gerrit Kroesen, and Ton Peijnenburg "Particle contamination control by application of plasma", Proc. SPIE 11323, Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) Lithography XI, 113232L (23 March 2020); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2560192
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KEYWORDS
Particles

Plasma

Contamination control

Extreme ultraviolet

Extreme ultraviolet lithography

Contamination

Scanners

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