Patent ID: 7980098

Claim:
A method for producing an optical component of synthetic quartz glass with radiation resistance in a microlithographic device at an operating wavelength below 250 nm, said method comprising: providing a quartz glass blank with a hydroxyl group content of less than 250 wtppm and subjecting the quartz glass blank to a multi-stage annealing treatment comprising the following steps: (a) a first treatment phase during which the quartz glass blank is treated in an upper temperature range between 1130° C. and 1240° C. during a first treatment period; (b) cooling the quartz glass blank at a first mean cooling rate to a quenching temperature below 1100° C., wherein the quartz glass blank reaches a first fictive temperature with a high mean value of 1100° C. or more; and (c) a second treatment phase comprising cooling the quartz glass blank at a second mean cooling rate lower than the first mean cooling rate, the quartz glass blank being treated in a lower temperature range between 950° C. and 1100° C. during a second treatment period such that the quartz glass blank reaches a second fictive temperature with a low mean value that is at least 50° C. lower than the high mean value of the first fictive temperature.