Photocopying – Projection printing and copying cameras – Focus or magnification control
Reexamination Certificate
2006-08-08
2006-08-08
Nguyen, Henry Hung (Department: 2851)
Photocopying
Projection printing and copying cameras
Focus or magnification control
C355S053000, C355S077000
Reexamination Certificate
active
07088426
ABSTRACT:
When a pattern is transferred via a projection optical system, a size of an image of the pattern varies depending on a defocus amount of a transferring position from the best focus position, and a flucuation curve showing the variation (the so-called CD-focus curve) varies depending on wavefront aberration of the projection optical system. There is a close relation between a linear combination value of a plurality of terms that each have a coefficient (an aberration component) of a plurality of Zernike terms (aberration component terms) into which the wavefront aberration of the projection optical system is decomposed using a Zernike polynomial in series expansion, and the variation of the flucuation curve. Accordingly, by using the above relation, the CD-focus curve related to the pattern via a projection optical system whose aberration state is predetermined exposed under predetermined exposure conditions can be predicted within a short period of time by a simple calculation of obtaining the linear combination value of a plurality of terms that each have an aberration component.
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Higashi Kenji
Hirukawa Shigeru
Nakashima Toshiharu
Nguyen Henry Hung
Nikon Corporation
Oblon & Spivak, McClelland, Maier & Neustadt P.C.
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