Patent ID: 7795559

Claim:
In a high-resolution, high-speed three dimensional radiation ablation system having an ablation station equipped with means to position a current substrate for processing, means to provide actinic radiation for treating such current substrate at an ablation site, whereby controlled radiation ablation by a sequence of pulses may be inhibited by dynamically produced ablation debris, such ablation station is equipped with a high-speed vacuum debris removal system (DRS) for effective and efficient engulfing and removal of such dynamically produced debris of various sizes, between each pulse of controlled radiation ablation process, characterized by: an improved DRS having a multiplicity of essentially sealed coaxial chambers from a first chamber having an actinic beam admission means ( 14 ), and each subsequent chamber similarly having beam admission means, as a composite leading to such ablation site ( 7 ) where ablation may take place with the possibility of producing inhibiting particulate debris, such chambers including a plurality of chambers (1, 2 . . . n), the chamber having the ablation site being equipped with means ( 16 ) for controlled flow of sweeping gas providing turbulence and flow sufficient to sweep ablation-inhibiting particles ( 18 ) at a velocity sufficient to propel such an inhibiting particle ( 18 ) selectively into one of said first chamber an intervening chamber, and with diminishing velocity and turbulence to continue sweeping gas flow propelling such ablation-inhibiting particles further from said first chamber and said intervening chamber into an exhaust chamber for disposal, further characterized by: metering holes interconnecting adjacent chambers for controlling partial pressures to carry particulate debris ( 18 ) along paths of diminishing vacuum partial pressures and turbulence.