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Dec. 1997
Nikon Corporation announced that the company starts taking orders in winter, 1997, for NSR-2205EX14C, Nikon's Step-and-Repeat KrF Excimer Stepper, and NSR-2205i14E, the i(I)-line Stepper.
NSR-2205EX14C, which employs KrF excimer laser (wavelength 248 nm) for the 22 x 22 mm exposure field, has achieved sub-quarter micron resolution.NSR-2205EX14C has also improved the throughput by 35% compared to its predecessor NSR-2205EX12B.
NSR-2205i14E using i(I)-line (wavelength 365 nm) for its light source is concurrently offered to take an utmost advantage of the two types of machines by "mix-and-matching".
Development Background
The other day, Nikon announced NSR-S202A, Nikon's Step-and-Repeat KrF Excimer Scanning System, and NSR-S102B, the Step-and-Repeat i(I)-line Scanning System.
Nikon has developed NSR-2205EX14C and i14E as machines producing high throughput required for reduction in production cost as well as high precision.
These have been implemented by installing newly developed air guide linear motor stage. In addition ,they have achieved reduction in exposure time by employing the new KrF excimer laser unit, and also achieved reduction in alignment time by reconsidering the alignment sequence.
NSR-2205EX14C has improved the throughput by 35% over the previous model NSR-2205EX12B by enhancing the respective element performance.
NSR-2205i14E, Step-and-Repeat i(I)-line Stepper, was launched to effectively reduce the cost of ownership by mix-and-matching with NSR-2205EX14C.
Main Features of NSR-2205EX14C
Employment of KrF excimer laser as a light source and the newly developed projection lens enables NSR-2205EX14C to achieve sub quarter micron resolution at the 22 x 22 mm exposure area to comfortably accommodate the needs to mass produce 64MDRAMs and trial produce 256MDRAMs.
Throughput improvement was contributed by two major factors : the wafer stage using the air guide linear motor is able to run at a faster speed; the new KrF excimer laser unit shortens the exposure time. The alignment time has also been shortened by optimizing the alignment system. NSR-2205EX14C boasts the throughput of 85 wafers per hour in terms of 8 inch (200mm) wafer.
Newly developed wafer table and the enhanced alignment optical system attained 20% improvement in alignment accuracy over the previous model.
Main Features of NSR-2205i14E
Employment of i(I)-line as a light source and the newly developed projection lens enables NSR-2205i14E to achieve 0.35 micron or better resolution at the 22 x 22 mm exposure area to print non-critical layers of the 64MDRAMs and 256MDRAMs patterns.
Main Specifications
| NSR-2005EX14C | NSR-2205i14E | |
|---|---|---|
| Resolution | 0.25 micron or better | 0.35 micron or better |
| Light source | KrF excimer laser (248nm) | i(I)-line (365 nm) |
| Reduction ratio | 1:5 | |
| Exposure area | 22 x 22 mm | |
| Alignment accuracy | 50 nm or better | |
| Throughput (8 in. (200mm) wafer) | 85 wafers/hr. | 87 wafers/hr. |
