[skew-aberration]

ASML actually did develop new (understanding of the) laws of physics, the so called Extended Nijboer-Zernike theory in the early 2000's (which extended diffraction optics to work in the high-NA regions relevant to modern lithography) and subsequently patented its application.

Zernike, a Nobel prize winning physicist who worked on optics, was also Dutch, and developed the original Zernike theory of aberrations in the mid 20th century. This was a vast improvement over previous theories as it was far more useful for optical design and analysis.

So the Dutch have a rich history of developing the most advanced physical theories for optical engineering (all the way back to Huygens even)