Abstract: A method for welding at least two aluminum-containing components is provided. The components have an aluminum content of at least 75% by weight. The method includes subdividing an output laser beam into multiple partial beams directed onto the components, so that multiple laser spots are generated on a surface of the components, and traversing a welding contour on the surface of the components with the multiple laser spots. Laser spot centers of at least three laser spots of the multiple laser spots are arranged in a ring formation. The output laser beam is generated by a multifiber, so that each laser spot of the multiple laser spots on the surface of the components has a core portion and a ring portion, with a mean power density in the core portion being higher than a mean power density in the ring portion.

Abstract: A method for welding at least two aluminum-containing components is provided. Each component has a content of at least 75% by weight of aluminium. The method includes subdividing an output laser beam into multiple partial beams directed onto the components such that multiple laser spots are generated on a surface of the components, and traversing a welding contour on the surface of the components with the multiple laser spots. Laser spot centers of at least three laser spots of the multiple laser spots are arranged in a ring formation. The output laser beam is generated by a multifiber such that each laser spot of the multiple laser spots on the surface of the components has a core portion and a ring portion. The welding contour is at least partially traversed by pivoting a first mirror in a controlled manner by a scanner optical unit.

Abstract: An optical component has a substrate, on which at least one curved substrate surface is formed that defines an optical axis of the optical component, wherein the substrate surface is coated with a multilayer coating that is active in the ultraviolet region at a design wavelength ?0 and includes a first layer, applied to the substrate surface, made from a first dielectric material and at least one second layer, applied to the first layer, made from a second dielectric material. The substrate consists essentially of a crystal material that has an axially parallel crystal direction, running parallel to the optical axis, and edge crystal directions perpendicular to edge regions of the curved substrate surface. An angle between the axially parallel crystal direction and the edge crystal directions is at least 17°, and the first layer has an essentially untextured layer structure. An anisotropy, caused by the substrate structure, in the optical properties of the multilayer coating can thereby be avoided.

Abstract: In a projection objective provided for imaging a pattern arranged in an object plane of the projection objective into an image plane of the projection objective with the aid of an immersion medium arranged between a last optical element of the projection objective in the light path and the image plane, the last optical element has a transparent substrate and a protective layer system that is fitted to the substrate, is provided for contact with the immersion medium and serves for increasing the resistance of the last optical element to degradation caused by the immersion medium.

Abstract: In a projection objective provided for imaging a pattern arranged in an object plane of the projection objective into an image plane of the projection objective with the aid of an immersion medium arranged between a last optical element of the projection objective in the light path and the image plane, the last optical element has a transparent substrate and a protective layer system that is fitted to the substrate, is provided for contact with the immersion medium and serves for increasing the resistance of the last optical element to degradation caused by the immersion medium.

Abstract: In a projection objective provided for imaging a pattern arranged in an object plane of the projection objective into an image plane of the projection objective with the aid of an immersion medium arranged between a last optical element of the projection objective in the light path and the image plane, the last optical element has a transparent substrate and a protective layer system that is fitted to the substrate, is provided for contact with the immersion medium and serves for increasing the resistance of the last optical element to degradation caused by the immersion medium.

Abstract: In a projection objective for imaging a pattern arranged in the object plane of the projection objective into the image plane of the projection objective, at least one optical component is provided which has a substrate in which at least one substrate surface is covered with an interference layer system having a great spatial modulation of the reflectance and/or of the transmittance over a usable cross section of the optical component, the modulation being adapted to a spatial transmission distribution of the remaining components of the projection objective in such a way that an intensity distribution of the radiation that is measured in a pupil surface has a substantially reduced spatial modulation in comparison with a projection objective without the interference layer system.

Abstract: An optical component and a coating system for coating substrates for optical components with essentially rotationally symmetric coatings, the system having a planetary-drive system (1) that has a rotating planet carrier (2) and several planets (4), each of which carries a single substrate, that corotate both with the planet carrier and with respect to the primary carrier. In one embodiment a set of stationary first masks (20) that allow controlling the radial variation in physical film thickness is arranged between a source (8) of material situated beneath the planets and the substrates. A set of second masks that mask off evaporation angles exceeding a limiting evaporation or incidence angle (? max) for every substrate also corotate with the primary carrier (2), which allows depositing coatings having a prescribed radial film-thickness distribution and a virtually constant density of the coating material over their full radial extents for relatively low, and only slightly varying, evaporation angles.

Abstract: An optical component has a substrate, on which at least one curved substrate surface is formed that defines an optical axis of the optical component, wherein the substrate surface is coated with a multilayer coating that is active in the ultraviolet region at a design wavelength ?0 and includes a first layer, applied to the substrate surface, made from a first dielectric material and at least one second layer, applied to the first layer, made from a second dielectric material. The substrate consists essentially of a crystal material that has an axially parallel crystal direction, running parallel to the optical axis, and edge crystal directions perpendicular to edge regions of the curved substrate surface. An angle between the axially parallel crystal direction and the edge crystal directions is at least 17°, and the first layer has an essentially untextured layer structure. An anisotropy, caused by the substrate structure, in the optical properties of the multilayer coating can thereby be avoided.

Abstract: In a projection objective provided for imaging a pattern arranged in an object plane of the projection objective into an image plane of the projection objective with the aid of an immersion medium arranged between a last optical element of the projection objective in the light path and the image plane, the last optical element has a transparent substrate and a protective layer system that is fitted to the substrate, is provided for contact with the immersion medium and serves for increasing the resistance of the last optical element to degradation caused by the immersion medium.

Abstract: An optical component and a coating system for coating substrates for optical components with essentially rotationally symmetric coatings, the system having a planetary-drive system (1) that has a rotating planet carrier (2) and several planets (4), each of which carries a single substrate, that corotate both with the planet carrier and with respect to the primary carrier. In one embodiment a set of stationary first masks (20) that allow controlling the radial variation in physical film thickness is arranged between a source (8) of material situated beneath the planets and the substrates. A set of second masks that mask off evaporation angles exceeding a limiting evaporation or incidence angle (? max) for every substrate also corotate with the primary carrier (2), which allows depositing coatings having a prescribed radial film-thickness distribution and a virtually constant density of the coating material over their full radial extents for relatively low, and only slightly varying, evaporation angles.

Abstract: A method for coating substrates (10) for optical components with essentially rotationally symmetric coatings employs a coating system equipped with a planetary-drive system (1) that has a rotating planet carrier (2) and several planets (4), each of which carries a single substrate, that corotate both with the planet carrier and with respect to the primary carrier. In one embodiment a set of stationary first masks (20) that allow controlling the radial variation in physical film thickness is arranged between a source (8) of material situated beneath the planets and the substrates. A set of second masks that mask off evaporation angles exceeding a limiting evaporation or incidence angle (? max) for every substrate also corotate with the primary carrier (2), which allows depositing coatings having a prescribed radial film-thickness distribution and a virtually constant density of the coating material over their full radial extents for relatively low, and only slightly varying, evaporation angles.

Abstract: A method for coating substrates (10) for optical components with essentially rotationally symmetric coatings employs a coating system equipped with a planetary-drive system (1) that has a rotating planet carrier (2) and several planets (4), each of which carries a single substrate, that corotate both with the planet carrier and with respect to the primary carrier. In one embodiment a set of stationary first masks (20) that allow controlling the radial variation in physical film thickness is arranged between a source (8) of material situated beneath the planets and the substrates. A set of second masks that mask off evaporation angles exceeding a limiting evaporation or incidence angle (&bgr;max) for every substrate also corotate with the primary carrier (2), which allows depositing coatings having a prescribed radial film-thickness distribution and a virtually constant density of the coating material over their full radial extents for relatively low, and only slightly varying, evaporation angles.