Four KHz gas discharge laser system

An extreme repetition rate gas discharge laser system capable of operating at pulse repetition rates in excess of 3,000 pulses per second, said laser comprising:

• A) a laser chamber containing a laser gas and having two elongated electrodes, defining a discharge region and having a gas flow path with a gradually increasing cross section downstream of said electrodes to permit recovery of a large percentage of static pressure drop occurring in the discharge region,
• B) a tangential type fan for producing sufficient gas velocities of said laser gas in said discharge region to clear from said discharge region, following each pulse, substantially all discharge produced ions prior to a next pulse when operating at a repetition rate in the range of 4,000 pulses per second or greater,
• C) a heat exchanger system capable of removing at least 16 kw of heat energy from said laser gas,
• D) a pulse power system configured to provide electrical pulses to said electrodes sufficient to produce laser pulses at rates of about 4,000 pulses per second with precisely controlled pulse energies in the range of about 5 mJ, and
• E) a laser beam measurement and control system capable of measuring pulse energy energy wavelength and bandwidth of energy pulses or substantially every pulse with feedback control of pulse energy and wavelength.