STAGE DEVICE AND ALIGNER

摘要

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a stage device which is small-sized and lightweight, and usable even under a vacuum. SOLUTION: The stage device 1 is equipped with bottom plates 3 and 4, and top plates 5 and 6 as guide plates each having two guide planes facing each other at a certain interval and a moving table 20, which is sandwiched between them and slides. Air pads are added on the top surfaces of the bottom plates 3 and 4, and air pads 51 are also added on the reverse surfaces of the top plates 5 and 6. The moving table 20 is able to move on the guide planes with low friction because of those air pads. The center of the moving table 20 is a sample base, where two masks can be mounted. The moving table 20 is provided with three linear motor coils 27a, 27b, and 25 and able to move in two directions (X and Y-directions) of the guide planes and around a shaft (θdirection) which crosses the guide planes at right angles.