Use of a random phase plate as a KrF laser beam homogenizer for thin film deposition applications

Fabrication of devices based on thin film structures deposited using the pu lsed laser deposition technique relies on reproducibility and control of de position rates over substrate areas as large as possible. Here we present a n application of the random phase plate technique to smooth and homogenize the intensity distribution of a KrF laser footprint on the surface of a tar get which is to be ablated. It is demonstrated that intensity distributions over millimeter-sized spots on the target can be made insensitive to the t ypical changes that occur in the near-field intensity distribution of the u ltraviolet output from a KrF laser. (C) 1999 American Institute of Physics. [S0034-6748(99)02504-6].