Patent ID: RE39662

Claim:
A projection exposure apparatus including: illuminating optical means for illuminating a projection negative; and projection optical means for projection-exposing said projection negative illuminated by said illuminating optical means onto a substrate; said illuminating optical means including light source means for supplying exposure light, annular light source forming means for forming an annular secondary light source, which has a plurality of light source images, by the light from said light source means, and condenser means for condensing light from said annular light source forming means on said projection negative; said apparatus satisfying the following condition: ⅓≦d 1 /d 2 ≦⅔, where d 1 is the inner diameter of said annular secondary light source, and d 2 is the outer diameter of said annular secondary light source; said apparatus also satisfying the following condition: 0.45≦NA 2 /NA 1 ≦0.8, where NA 1 is the numerical aperture of said projection optical means, and NA 2 is the numerical aperture of said illuminating optical means determined by the outer diameter of said annular secondary light source.