HOMOGENIZATION OF A SPATIALLY COHERENT RADIATION BEAM AND PRINTING AND INSPECTION, RESPECTIVELY, OF A PATTERN ON A WORKPIECE

摘要

The present invention relates to a device for homogenizing the spatial intensity distribution of a spatially coherent radiation beam (11). The device includes a grating (13) arranged in the propagation path of said spatially coherent radiation beam for diffracting said coherent beam and thus decreasing the coherence length of a diffracted radiation beam in a direction orthogonal to the propagation direction of the radiation beam relative to the width of the radiation beam in said orthogonal direction; and a radiation splitting and directing arrangement (15, 17, 19) arranged in the propagation path of said diffracted radiation beam for splitting said diffracted radiation beam into spatially separated portions and for superimposing said spatially separated portions to thereby form a radiation beam having a homogenized spatial intensity distribution.