Patent ID: 8436979

Claim:
An exposure apparatus that exposes a substrate with an energy beam via a projection optical system and via liquid, the apparatus comprising: a first table that is capable of moving while a substrate is mounted thereon; a second table that is capable of moving independently from the first table while a substrate is mounted thereon; a drive system that has a motor and moves the first and second tables relative to the projection optical system; and a liquid immersion system that has a liquid immersion member and supplies the liquid via the liquid immersion member to locally form a liquid immersion area below the projection optical system, the liquid immersion member surrounding an optical member of the projection optical system, the optical member being in contact with the liquid, wherein, during exposure of the substrate mounted on one of the first and second tables, the drive system moves the one of the first and second tables so that the mounted substrate is moved relative to the liquid immersion area, and wherein the drive system moves the first and second tables relative to the liquid immersion member so as to transition from a first state to a second state, the first state in which the liquid immersion area is maintained between the projection optical system and the one of the first and second tables, the second state in which the liquid immersion area is maintained between the projection optical system and the other one of the first and second tables, and wherein, during the transition, the first and second tables are close to each other and the liquid immersion area is maintained below the projection optical system.