Patent ID: 9390827
Filing Date: 2016-07-12
CPC Classification: G03F,G21K,H01S,H05G

Claim Text:
1. A device comprising: a droplet generator producing droplets of target material; a laser source producing laser pulses, wherein the droplet generator produces the droplets and the laser source produces the laser pulses during at least each of two burst periods, an intervening period being in between the two burst periods and wherein during the intervening period, at least one of a first condition and a second condition exists, the first condition characterized by at least the laser source producing the laser pulses during the intervening period, the second condition characterized by at least the droplet generator producing the droplets during the intervening period; and a system that varies, using air flow along the direction of droplet travel, position of the droplets to create a burst period operating regime that executes during the burst period and an intervening period operating regime that executes during the intervening period, wherein when the system executes the intervening period operating regime during the intervening period, a position along the direction of droplet travel of at least one droplet of said droplets of material is altered, using said air flow, from a position that said at least one droplet would have occupied had the system operates in the burst period operating regime, thereby resulting in fewer droplets being impinged by the laser pulses during the intervening period than if the system had executed the burst period operating regime during the intervening period.