TI-REX: A Tunable Infrared laser for Experiments in nanolithography

In a world where miniaturization leads technology advancement, extreme ultraviolet (EUV) light is becoming the tool for leading companies to increase the number of transistors on a chip. EUV light is generated via laser-produced plasma (LPP), that is currently driven by 10.6 µ m CO 2 lasers, due to their high demonstrated conversion efficiency (CE) from laser power to EUV. In terms of laser technology, solid-state lasers based on Nd:YAG, operating around 1 µm wavelength have significant advantages in terms of efficiency, stability and control over temporal pulse shape and contrast. However, so far they provide lower CE than CO 2 lasers [1] , even though advanced pulse temporal shaping seems advantageous in this regard. A promising avenue is the investigation of the intermediate wavelength regime: first data for 2 µ m lasers already indicates a CE improvement compared to 1 µm [2] , and simulations predict even better performances for wavelengths between 2 and 10 µ m .