Patent ID: 6834069
Filing Date: 2004-12-21
Classification: G02B,H01S

Abstract:
A F2 laser, comprising:a laser resonator including therein a discharge chamber filed with a laser gas mixture including molecular fluorine for generating a spectral emission, the spectral emission including a plurality of emission lines in a wavelength range between 157 nm and 158 nm, the plurality of emission lines including a first emission line centered around 157.62 nm and a second emission line centered around 157.52 nm; a plurality of electrodes within the discharge chamber connected with a power supply circuit or energizing the molecular fluorine and generating a laser beam in the laser resonator, the laser beam containing the spectral emission; a transmission diffraction grating positioned along the laser beam in the laser resonator, the transmission diffraction grating positioned so as to transmit only one of the fit and second emission lines; and one or more polarization elements positioned in the laser resonator along the laser beam, wherein each polarization element is aligned at an angle relative to the laser beam such that at least 95% of an output beam transmitted by the one or more polarization elements has the same polarization, the 95% polarized output beam containing said one of the first and second mission lines transmitted by the transmission diffraction grating.