Nikon 2007 Annual Report Download - page 9

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NIKON ANNUAL REPORT 2007 07
THE STATE-OF-THE-ART NSR-S610C ArF IMMERSION SCANNER
HAS ATTRACTED A LOT OF ATTENTION WITHIN THE INDUSTRY.
THIS MODEL IS POSITIONED TO BE A MAJOR GROWTH DRIVER
FOR NIKON’S IC STEPPER AND SCANNER BUSINESS GOING
FORWARD.
The technical superiority of Nikon’s ArF immersion scanners is based
on two innovative solutions: Local Fill Technology and Tandem Stage.
Local Fill Technology
Defects are a major concern of customers when using immersion
lithography. Nikon’s Local Fill Technology has been proven to eliminate
defects related to immersion caused by bubbles or water spots, as
well as preventing nearly all problems due to backside wafer
contamination. The technology also stops any evaporation of the
immersion fluid, which provides a critical advantage in raising
alignment accuracy by preventing immersion-related overlay
problems.
Tandem Stage
Nikon developed the Tandem Stage as a way of achieving high
throughput while also improving alignment accuracy. The design
utilizes two separate stages with different functions. The reduced-
weight Exposure Stage achieves wafer pattern exposure at higher
scan speeds than previously possible. The Calibration Stage is used to
calibrate various errors between each wafer exchange. The result is a
system with high throughput and improved accuracy.
NIKON ACHIEVED GOOD RESULTS IN THE MARKETS FOR IC AND LCD
STEPPERS AND SCANNERS IN THE YEAR ENDED MARCH 2007. SEGMENT
SALES ROSE 20.3% COMPARED WITH THE PREVIOUS YEAR TO ¥292,562
MILLION. OPERATING INCOME SOARED 87.0% TO ¥49,321 MILLION,
REFLECTING THE SUCCESS OF MOVES TO PROMOTE THE USE OF
STANDARDIZED MODULES AND SIMPLIFIED DESIGNS.
NSR-S610C ArF immersion scanner