Laser mirror having a cooled, deformable surface

Claim 1

A laser mirror having a cooled, deformable reflecting surface, said mirror being comprised of: a. a thin faceplate having a central region, said faceplate being capable of being selectively deformed by the application of mechanical forces thereto, said faceplate having a first, top side and a second, bottom side, said top side having a reflecting surface for reflecting an incident beam of electromagnetic radiation, said faceplate having one or more enclosed, elongated spaces contained therein for receiving a coolant for cooling said faceplate, each of said elongated spaces traversing substantially the entire width of said faceplate, each of said one or more elongated spaces in said faceplate having a first aperture through which coolant may be introduced into said elongated space and a second aperture through which coolant may be drained away from said elongated spaces, said first and said second apertures being located on said second, bottom side of said faceplate at distal ends of said elongated spaces; b. a base manifold, said base manifold including means for distributing coolant toward said faceplate and means for collecting coolant which has been circulated through said one or more enclosed spaces in said faceplate; c. a plurality of actuators located between the second, bottom side of said faceplate and said base manifold, said actuators being selectively operable by the application of signals thereto to elongate said actuators and to thereby selectively impart to said faceplate mechanical forces to effect the selective deformation of the reflecting surface of said faceplate; d. at least two of said actuators being coolant-carrying actuators, said coolant-carrying actuators having passages therethrough to permit coolant to be transferred between said faceplate and said base manifold, at least a first of said coolant-carrying actuators fastened between said means for distributing coolant in said base manifold and a one of said first aperture in the second side of said faceplate, at least a second one of said coolant-carrying actuators fastened between a second one of said apertures in the second side of said faceplate and said means for collecting coolant in said base manifold, said first and said second apertures being in coolant-communicating relationship to a common one of said enclosed spaces in said faceplate, said coolant-carrying actuators being located at the periphery of said faceplate away from the central region of said faceplate; e. means for circulating coolant toward and away from said base manifold; whereby said faceplate is cooled by coolant circulating from said base manifold through at least a first of said coolant-carrying actuators to said faceplate and through at least one of said elongated spaces in said faceplate and back to said base manifold through at least a second of said coolant-carrying actuators.