US Patent 7737420 Pixelated modulation of illumination pupil image

The present invention describes a method of conditioning radiation upstream from a reticle including: pixelating the radiation, the pixelating involving partitioning into pixels; modulating a first set of the pixels to configure for openings; modulating a second set of the pixels to outline for specific features of the openings; modulating a third set of the pixels to correct for local non-uniformities; modulating a fourth set of the pixels to compensate for global non-uniformities; and modulating a fifth set of the pixels to establish for gray scale.