Excimer laser pulse analyzer and method

摘要

System and method for analyzing pulses from an excimer laser by measuring light energy rather than heat energy. The output of the laser is monitored with a photodetector to provide electrical current pulses corresponding to the intensity of the light in individual ones of the laser pulses. The current pulses are integrated to provide voltages corresponding to the light energy of the laser pulses, and the voltages are converted to digital signals. The digital signals are accumulated during the exposure period to determine the total light energy of the pulses during that period and also during a shorter interval of time during the exposure period. The light energy for the interval is divided by the length of the interval to determine the average intensity of the pulses during the interval. Displays are provided for the light energy and the intensity of the pulses, as well as the length of the exposure period.