Patent ID: 8116346
Filing Date: 2012-02-14
Classification: H01S

Abstract:
1. A gas discharge laser comprising: a housing including spaced-apart electrodes and a lasing gas; a laser resonator extending between the spaced-apart electrodes; an RF power supply arranged to provide RF output power to the electrodes for creating a discharge in the lasing gas between the electrodes thereby causing laser output radiation to be delivered by the laser resonator, the power of the laser output radiation being directly dependent on the RF power provided to the electrodes; a temperature sensing element embedded in one of the discharge electrodes for measuring the temperature of the gas discharge between the spaced apart electrodes, the temperature sensing element generating a signal representative of the temperature of the gas discharge, the power of the laser output radiation being inversely dependent on the temperature of the gas discharge; and a circuit responsive to the gas discharge temperature signal to adjust the output power of the RF power supply responsive to changes in the gas discharge temperature such that the power of the output radiation is about constant.