Starting point selection in grouping design method for lithographic objectives

This work aims on method development for obtaining initial designs for ultraviolet (UV) and deep-ultraviolet (DUV) objectives through global search algorithm. We studied a global search based algorithm tending to obtain the feasible local minima of lens design landscape. One of the major challenges of our work is writing macro input related to a number of lenses, the length of objective, and glass material. The obtained results show the main advantages and efficiency of the design approach based on the global search algorithm. As an output, we developed a method and criteria for successful selection of the starting point of micro-lithographic objectives