Xtreme Technologies Gmbh

Frank Flohrer

Guido Hergenhan

Christian Ziener

Juergen Kleinschmidt

Carsten Thode

An arrangement for the generation of radiation by a gas discharge has the object of achieving a considerable reduction in the inductance of the discharge circuit for the gas discharge while simultaneously increasing the lifetime of the electrode system. Also, the use of different emitters is ensured. A rotary electrode arrangement accommodated in the discharge chamber contains electrodes which are rigidly connected to one another at a distance from one another and are mounted so as to be rotatable around a common axis. Capacitor elements of a high-voltage power supply for generating high-voltage pulses for the two electrodes are arranged in a free space formed by the mutual distance. The electrodes are electrically connected to the capacitor elements and to a voltage source for charging the capacitor elements.

Arrangement for radiation generation by means of a gas discharge

The invention is directed to an arrangement for generating extreme ultraviolet (EUV) radiation based on a plasma that is generated by electric discharge. It is the object of the invention to provide a novel possibility for radiation sources based on an electric discharge by which a long lifetime of the electrodes that are employed and the largest possible solid angle for bundling the radiation emitted from the plasma are achieved. According to the invention, this object is met by providing coated electrodes in the form of two endless strip electrodes which circulate over guide rollers and which have at a short distance between them an area in which the electric discharge takes place. The coating is at least partially sacrificed through excitation by an energy beam and generation of plasma, and means for driving each strip electrode are arranged in such a way that during a revolution the strip electrodes, after immersion in a molten metal, are guided through a wiper for generating a defined thickness of coating material, are directed in a vacuum chamber to a location where the desired generation of plasma takes place, and are guided back into the molten metal after the electric discharge in order to regenerate the coating and to make electric contact between the electrodes and a pulsed high-voltage source.

Arrangement for the generation of extreme ultraviolet radiation by means of electric discharge at electrodes which can be regenerated

The object of the invention in an arrangement for generating extreme ultraviolet radiation based on an electrically operated gas discharge is to reduce the time required for charging the electrodes by reducing the inductance of the discharge circuit. A high-voltage power supply connected to the electrodes which are constructed as disk electrodes and are rotatably mounted has a capacitor battery comprising capacitor elements which are arranged along a ring concentric to the axis of rotation of the electrodes with a ring plane directed parallel to the disk surface. Electrical connections are guided to the disk surfaces from the capacitor elements along a ring concentric to the axis of rotation.

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Jena, Germany

Frank Flohrer