Pulsed gas-discharge laser system

Abstract

To provide a pulsed gas-discharge laser system, in particular a pulsed excimer laser system, comprising a resonator and a gas volume filled with laser gas in which a gas discharge is ignitable, a microwave discharge structure surrounding the gas volume at least partially for maintaining the gas discharge, a microwave source for generating a microwave pulse and a microwave line leading from the microwave source to the microwave discharge structure, in which the laser pulse power behaves overproportionally to the pumping power, it is proposed that there be coupled to the microwave line by a coupling element a resonant microwave storage structure which leads to the gas volume and extends with at least a partial section thereof between the microwave discharge structure and the microwave line, and that the microwave storage structure be of such design and coupled to the microwave line by the coupling element in such a way that it stores the energy from the microwave pulse emitted by the microwave source until the ignition of the gas discharge and after the ignition of the gas discharge maintains the latter with the stored energy.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.