A cooling device for generating a cold gas flow comprising a gas source and at least one first heat exchanger (4) having a connection (14b) on the input side and a connection (15b) on the output side being cooled using a cold source (10), is characterized in that the cooling device comprises at least one second heat exchanger (5) having a connection (14a) on the input side and a connection (15a) on the output side, wherein the first heat exchanger (4) and the second heat exchanger (5) are disposed in an evacuated container (11) and operate in parallel, the first heat exchanger (4) and the second heat exchanger (5) being connected, via their connections (15a, 15b) on the output side, to a common output line (8) into which they alternately supply the cleaned gas flow. The inventive cooling device may be operated with conventional gases for a long time period without any disturbances.