Patent ID: 7394520

Claim:
A load lock for a lithographic apparatus arranged to transfer an object into and from the lithographic apparatus, comprising: an outer wall at least partly defining a load lock volume accommodating a support unit constructed and arranged to support said object when in said load lock at a predetermined pressure, said outer wall being constructed and arranged to permit said object to be transferred between said load lock volume and the lithographic apparatus outside said outer wall; a temperature conditioned structure constructed and arranged to control a temperature of said object to a desired temperature at least before said object is transferred from said load lock towards the lithographic projection apparatus; and a processor in communication with a pump to depressurize the load lock volume by the pump from a first pressure to a second pressure, the processor also being arranged to control the temperature conditioned structure such that the object is at a predetermined temperature that is higher than said desired temperature when said processor starts depressurizing said load lock volume.