Debris mitigation of a Xe discharge-produced plasma source combined gas jet and Halbach cylinder
High-energy ions and metal debris generated by extreme ultraviolet (EUV) light sources pose a severe threat to collector optics. This study demonstrates a hybrid mitigation strategy that combines a helium buffer gas jet with a segmented Halbach cylinder to suppress debris from a discharge-produced plasma source. A semi-analytical model incorporating finite-length effects was developed to optimize the magnetic topology, achieving a central field strength exceeding 0.85 T for magnetic mitigation. Scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy reveal a pristine witness surface with a 36% reduction in roughness compared to the non-magnetic case. In situ quartz crystal microbalance measurements demonstrate that the magnetic field alone reduces debris mass deposition by approximately 69%. Furthermore, unlike heavier buffer gases, the helium jet stabilizes mitigation performance with minimal in-band EUV absorption. These results establish the combined jet–magnetic scheme as a compact, high-efficiency solution for next-generation lithography sources.
Authors
- Kai Leong Chong (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3182-3689)
- Guo Yang
- Quan Zhou
- Xiao Ling
- Jianhua Zhang
- Jiale Zheng
- Chenhao Zhou
Institutions
- Shanghai University (CN)
- Shanghai University of Engineering Science (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Applied Physics Letters
- Published
- 2026-03-23
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0318617
- Primary Topic
- Atomic and Molecular Physics
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00