IP Library › Granted Patent US 12,516,963
Granted Patent B2
US 12,516,963 · App. 18/609,453 · Granted Jan 6, 2026

Method for determining a position of a mirror

Inventor: Michael Patra (Oberkochen, DE)
Assignee: Carl Zeiss SMT GmbH
G01D5/285G01D5/266G02B26/001G03F7/70141G03F7/7015G03F7/702G03F7/70233G03F7/70258G03F7/70316G03F7/70325G03F7/70408G03F7/70508G03F7/70516G03F7/70525
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,516,963
App. No.
18/609,453
Granted
Jan 6, 2026
Kind
B2
Abstract

A method for determining a position of a mirror of an optical system comprises: a) providing at least one parameter from a mechanical model of the mirror; b) interferometrically detecting a temporal change in a distance of a point of a curved mirror effective surface; and c) ascertaining an amplitude and a phase of N eigenmodes from the temporal change in the distance and the at least one parameter to determine the position of the mirror.

Claims (22)

1 . A method, comprising:

a) interferometrically detecting a temporal change of a distance of a point on a curved used mirror surface of a mirror in an optical system; and

b) determining a pose of the mirror by ascertaining an amplitude and a phase of eigenmodes from the temporal change of the distance and a parameter from a mechanical model of the mirror.

2 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising, before b), providing the parameter.

3 . The method of claim 1 , comprising using the mechanical model to calculate the amplitude and the phase of the eigenmodes.

4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein b) comprises interferometrically detecting a temporal change of a distance of a multiplicity of points on the curved used mirror surface of the mirror.

5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the mirror supports actuators, and the method further comprises controlling the actuators based on the amplitude and the phase of the eigenmodes to reduce the amplitude.

6 . The method of claim 1 , comprising using an interferometer and a beam shaping unit.

7 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising using a beam shaping unit to shape a measurement beam of an interferometer so that light rays of the measurement beam are oriented at right angles to the curved used mirror surface at each point in a region in which the measurement beam is incident on the curved used mirror surface.

8 . The method of claim 7 , wherein the measurement beam is reflected from the curved used mirror surface, and the method further comprises using a reflector mirror to reflect the reflected measurement beam back to the curved used mirror surface.

9 . The method of claim 8 , wherein the reflector mirror is between the interferometer and the beam shaping unit.

10 . The method of claim 7 , wherein the optical system further comprises a fixed reference supporting a measuring arrangement which comprises the interferometer and the beam shaping unit, and the curved used mirror surface faces the fixed reference.

11 . The method of claim 10 , wherein the fixed reference comprises a sensor frame.

12 . The method of claim 10 , wherein the optical system further comprises a multiplicity of mirrors, and the fixed reference is interior to the mirrors.

13 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising using a beam shaping unit to shape the measurement beam so that the measurement beam is focused on the point on the curved used mirror surface.

14 . The method of claim 13 , wherein the measurement beam is reflected from the curved used mirror surface, and the method further comprises using a reflector mirror to reflect the reflected measurement beam back to the curved used mirror surface.

15 . The method of claim 14 , wherein a measuring arrangement comprises an interferometer and the beam shaping unit, and the reflector mirror is between the interferometer and the beam shaping unit.

16 . The method of claim 13 , wherein a measuring arrangement comprises an interferometer and the beam shaping unit, the optical system further comprises a fixed reference supporting the measuring arrangement, and the curved used mirror surface faces the fixed reference.

17 . The method of claim 16 , wherein the fixed reference comprises a sensor frame.

18 . The method of claim 16 , wherein the optical system further comprises a multiplicity of mirrors, and the fixed reference is interior to the mirrors.

19 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the parameter comprises at least one member selected from the group consisting of eigenfrequencies of the eigenmodes and mode profiles of the eigenmodes.

20 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the optical system is selected from the group consisting of a projection optical unit of a lithography projection exposure apparatus, and an illumination system of a lithography projection exposure apparatus.

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Apr 23, 2024
From: PATRA, MICHAEL
To: CARL ZEISS SMT GMBH
Reel/Frame 067199/0011 →
Priority Claims (1)
DE 10 2021 210 577.7 · Sep 23, 2021 · national
Continuity (2)
Continuation PCTEP2022075609 · Sep 15, 2022
Related Publication 20240255319A1 · Aug 1, 2024
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