PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Old crystal, new story for enhancing deep ultraviolet laser performance

Researchers developed a 60-milliwatt solid-state DUV laser at 193 nm using LBO crystals, setting new benchmarks in efficiency values

Old crystal, new story for enhancing deep ultraviolet laser performance
2024-04-01
(Press-News.org) In the realm of science and technology, harnessing coherent light sources in the deep ultraviolet (DUV) region holds immense significance across various applications such as lithography, defect inspection, metrology, and spectroscopy. Traditionally, high-power 193-nanometer (nm) lasers have been pivotal in lithography, forming an integral part of systems used for precise patterning. However, the coherence limitations associated with conventional ArF excimer lasers hinder their effectiveness in applications requiring high-resolution patterns, like interference lithography.

Enter the concept of the "hybrid ArF excimer laser." Integrating a narrow linewidth solid-state 193-nm laser seed in place of the ArF oscillator achieves enhanced coherence alongside narrow linewidth, thus enabling improved performance in high-throughput interference lithography. This innovation not only boosts pattern precision but also accelerates lithography speed.

Moreover, the hybrid ArF excimer laser's heightened photon energy and coherence facilitate direct processing of various materials, including carbon compounds and solids, with minimal thermal impact. This versatility underscores its potential in diverse fields, from lithography to laser machining.

To optimize seeding for an ArF amplifier, the linewidth of the 193-nm seed laser must be meticulously controlled, ideally below 4 gigahertz (GHz). This specification dictates the coherence length crucial for interference, a criterion readily met through solid-state laser technologies.

A recent breakthrough from researchers at the Chinese Academy of Sciences propels this field forward. As reported in Advanced Photonics Nexus, they achieved a remarkable 60-milliwatt (mW) solid-state DUV laser at 193 nm with a narrow linewidth using a sophisticated two-stage sum frequency generation process employing LBO crystals. The process involves pump lasers at 258 and 1553 nm, derived from a Yb-hybrid laser and an Er-doped fiber laser, respectively. This setup, culminating in a 2mm×2mm×30mm Yb:YAG bulk crystal for power scaling, demonstrates impressive results.

The generated DUV laser, accompanied by its 221-nm counterpart, exhibits an average power of 60 mW, a pulse duration of 4.6 nanoseconds (ns), and a repetition rate of 6 kilohertz (kHz), with a linewidth of approximately 640 megahertz (MHz). Notably, this marks the highest power output for both 193- and 221-nm lasers generated by an LBO crystal, along with the narrowest linewidth reported for a 193-nm laser.

Of particular note is the outstanding conversion efficiency achieved: 27 percent for 221 to 193 nm and 3 percent for 258 to 193 nm, setting new benchmarks in efficiency values. This research underscores the immense potential of LBO crystals in generating DUV lasers at power levels ranging from hundreds of milliwatts to watts, opening up avenues for exploring other DUV laser wavelengths.

According to Prof. Hongwen Xuan, corresponding author for the work, the reported research demonstrates “the viability of pumping LBO with solid-state lasers for reliable and effective generation of narrow-linewidth laser at 193 nm, and opens a new way to fabricate a cost-effective, high-power DUV laser system using LBO.”

These advancements not only push the boundaries of DUV laser technology but also hold promise for revolutionizing myriad applications across scientific and industrial domains.

For details, see the original Gold Open Access article by Z. Zhang et al., “High-power, narrow linewidth solid-state deep ultraviolet laser generation at 193 nm by frequency mixing in LBO crystals,” Adv. Photon. Nexus 3(2) 026012 (2024), doi 10.1117/1.APN.3.2.026012

END

[Attachments] See images for this press release:
Old crystal, new story for enhancing deep ultraviolet laser performance

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

April issues of APA journals cover treatment for irritability in youth, collaborative psychopharmacology, disparities in use of restraint, and more

2024-04-01
WASHINGTON, D.C., April 1, 2024 — The latest issues of three American Psychiatric Association journals, The American Journal of Psychiatry, Psychiatric Services and The American Journal of Psychotherapy are now available online. The April issue of The American Journal of Psychiatry features studies that focus on youth psychopathology. Highlights include: Promising clinical results and neuroimaging findings seen in a double-blind trial of intranasal oxytocin for irritability. (AJP Deputy Editor Danny Pine highlights the study in this video and lead author Soonjo Hwang is the featured guest on April’s AJP Audio podcast episode.) A critical integrative review of irritability ...

I spy with my speedy eye – scientists discover speed of visual perception ranges widely in humans

2024-04-01
Using a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it experiment, researchers from Trinity College Dublin have discovered that individuals differ widely in the rate at which they perceive visual signals. Some people perceive a rapidly changing visual cue at frequencies that others cannot, which means some access more visual information per timeframe than others. This discovery uggests some people have an innate advantage in certain settings where response time is crucial, such as in ball sports, or in competitive ...

Reinventing computer vision to mimic human vision

Reinventing computer vision to mimic human vision
2024-04-01
As computer vision (CV) systems become increasingly power and memory intensive, they become unsuitable for high-speed and resource deficit edge applications - such as hypersonic missile tracking and autonomous navigation - because of size, weight, and power constraints. At the University of Pittsburgh, engineers are ushering in the next generation of computer vision systems by using neuromorphic engineering to reinvent visual processing systems with a biological inspiration - human vision. Rajkumar Kubendran, assistant professor ...

Ancient Adélie penguin DNA reveals that small repeats persist for hundreds of millions of years

Ancient Adélie penguin DNA reveals that small repeats persist for hundreds of millions of years
2024-04-01
Microsatellites are valuable tools for studying inheritance, genetic diversity, and population dynamics across a wide range of organisms including bacteria, plants, animals, and fungi. These short, repeating sequence motifs are a common feature of both coding and non-coding DNA and have been observed in all genomes studied to date. Their repetitive nature leads to “slippage” in the DNA replication machinery, resulting in the addition or subtraction of repeats that causes microsatellites to grow or shrink in length. Because of this, there is considerable variability ...

Applications open for 2024 Michelson prizes: $150,000 grants available to immunology innovators

2024-04-01
LOS ANGELES  – Today, Michelson Medical Research Foundation (MMRF) and the Human Immunome Project (HIP) opened the application period for the 2024 Michelson Prizes: Next Generation Grants. The annual prizes award $150,000 research grants to early-career scientists advancing human immunology, vaccine discovery, and immunotherapy research for major global diseases.  The international prize supports high-risk, high-reward research poised to tackle global health crises and address current roadblocks in human vaccine development and our understanding of key immune processes.  “Securing funding for innovative research is a significant hurdle for young scientists, ...

Chemical Insights Research Institute webinar examines extreme climate condition impacts on human health

2024-04-01
ATLANTA – Chemical Insights Research Institute (CIRI) of UL Research Institutes is examining what it means to support human health in the face of many environmental stressors, including extreme heat, extreme precipitation and wildfires through the upcoming webinar "Protecting Human Health While Adapting to Extreme Climate Conditions."   The webinar takes place on Wednesday, April 3, 2024, at 2:00 p.m. ET.   The webinar will begin with a brief overview of resilience for health in the built environment, followed by a discussion among expert panelists ...

Acids enables adhesive electrodes for thin, flexible supercapacitors

Acids enables adhesive electrodes for thin, flexible supercapacitors
2024-04-01
Supercapacitors have the superb ability to capture and store energy. Researchers can use different materials and fabrication methods to make them flexible, thin and appropriate for use in wearable or implantable electronics, like smart watches or pacemakers, but those approaches tend to be intricate and costly. Now, however, a team from Jilin University in China has developed a kind of all-in-one adhesive electrode that solves one of the major issues facing advancing flexible 2D supercapacitors - making the ...

Fungal resources —— Eleven new species of Trichoderma (Hypocreaceae, Hypocreales) from China

Fungal resources —— Eleven new species of Trichoderma (Hypocreaceae, Hypocreales) from China
2024-04-01
Trichoderma spp. are globally distributed and are considered significant fungal resources. They are widely studied and applied due to their economic and ecological importance, offering numerous benefits, such as producing enzymes and antibiotics, aiding in plant growth, and protecting them from pathogens.   This study led by Prof. Chu-Long Zhang (Fungal Resources Utilization and Plant Protection Research Group, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China) presents the discovery of eleven new species of Trichoderma. The team obtained a total of 618 Trichoderma ...

Using chemistry and a 300-year-old technique to reinvent a drink (video)

Using chemistry and a 300-year-old technique to reinvent a drink (video)
2024-04-01
WASHINGTON, April 1, 2024 — Adding milk to an alcoholic drink and then curdling that milk is a 300-year-old preservation technique that was used by none other than Ben Franklin. Join George as he discovers the chemistry that makes this technique so useful, and learn how to make the best espresso martini you’ll ever taste. https://youtu.be/ef0heKtiuvQ?si=W5uDUccoh_bOWtZy Reactions is a video series produced by the American Chemical Society and PBS Digital Studios. Subscribe to Reactions at http://bit.ly/ACSReactions and follow us on Twitter @ACSReactions. The American ...

Reducing hospitalizations and multidrug-resistant organisms via regional decolonization in hospitals and nursing homes

2024-04-01
About The Study: In this quality improvement study of 35 health care facilities in Orange County, California, using quasi-experimental design, chlorhexidine bathing and nasal decolonization were associated with significantly lower multidrug-resistant organism prevalence and incident clinical cultures. Infection-related hospitalizations, associated costs, and deaths among nursing home residents also decreased.  Authors: Susan S. Huang, M.D., M.P.H., of the University of California Irvine School of Medicine in Irvine, is the corresponding author. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Plant doctor: An AI system that watches over urban trees without touching a leaf

Study tracks chromium chemistry in irradiated molten salts

Scientists: the beautiful game is a silver bullet for global health

Being physically active, even just a couple of days a week, may be key to better health

High-fat diet promote breast cancer metastasis in animal models

A router for photons

Nurses and AI collaborate to save lives, reduce hospital stays

Multi-resistance in bacteria predicted by AI model

Tinker Tots: A citizen science project to explore ethical dilemmas in embryo selection

Sensing sickness

Cost to build multifamily housing in California more than twice as high as in Texas

Program takes aim at drinking, unsafe sex, and sexual assault on college campuses

Inability to pay for healthcare reaches record high in U.S.

Science ‘storytelling’ urgently needed amid climate and biodiversity crisis

KAIST Develops Retinal Therapy to Restore Lost Vision​

Adipocyte-hepatocyte signaling mechanism uncovered in endoplasmic reticulum stress response

Mammals were adapting from life in the trees to living on the ground before dinosaur-killing asteroid

Low LDL cholesterol levels linked to reduced risk of dementia

Thickening of the eye’s retina associated with greater risk and severity of postoperative delirium in older patients

Almost one in ten people surveyed report having been harmed by the NHS in the last three years

Enhancing light control with complex frequency excitations

New research finds novel drug target for acute myeloid leukemia, bringing hope for cancer patients

New insight into factors associated with a common disease among dogs and humans

Illuminating single atoms for sustainable propylene production

New study finds Rocky Mountain snow contamination

Study examines lactation in critically ill patients

UVA Engineering Dean Jennifer West earns AIMBE’s 2025 Pierre Galletti Award

Doubling down on metasurfaces

New Cedars-Sinai study shows how specialized diet can improve gut disorders

Making moves and hitting the breaks: Owl journeys surprise researchers in western Montana

[Press-News.org] Old crystal, new story for enhancing deep ultraviolet laser performance
Researchers developed a 60-milliwatt solid-state DUV laser at 193 nm using LBO crystals, setting new benchmarks in efficiency values