Patent ID: 6400456
Filing Date: 2002-06-04
Classification: G03F

Abstract:
In a plane positioning apparatus installed on a scanning exposure apparatus, which comprises a mask stage for scanning a mask formed with a transfer pattern in a predetermined direction in respect to a radiating region with a predetermined variable shape, and a substrate stage for scanning a photosensitive substrate in a predetermined direction in synchronization with said mask stage, and which sequentially exposes the pattern of said mask onto said substrate, said plane positioning apparatus being for aligning the exposure plane of said substrate with a predetermined reference plane, and comprising:a plane positioning means installed on said substrate stage for aligning a predetermined approximate plane of the exposure plane of said substrate with said predetermined reference plane; a height detection means for detecting height information of the exposure plane of said substrate at a plurality of measurement points in a measurement region before an exposure region of the pattern of said mask with respect to the scanning direction of said substrate; and an approximate plane calculation means for calculating said approximate plane of the exposure plane of said substrate by using a plurality of the height information on the exposure plane of said substrate from said height detection means; wherein said plurality of the height information is selected in accordance with a variation in shape of said exposure region, and the shape of the exposure region varies according to said variable radiating region during the scanning exposure; and wherein the calculated approximate plane being aligned with said predetermined reference plane by said plane positioning means.