Two- and three-grating resonators for high-power pulsed CO sub 2 lasers
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Alabama (USA)
- Department of Physical Sciences, University of Houston Clear Lake, Houston, Texas (USA)
Development of broadly tunable narrow-linewidth CO{sub 2} lasers is critical to the continued development of tunable far-infrared Raman lasers and could also improve many other optical pumping experiments. Here we extend the use of multiple intracavity gratings, a widely used dye laser technique, to multiatmosphere continuously tunable CO{sub 2} lasers. We analyze the angular dispersion, wavelength tuning performance, and grating size requirements for several different grating configurations. Experimentally, by double passing each of two gratings worked near grazing incidence in a three-mirror 10-atm laser resonator, we have produced {similar to}200-mJ pulses with {lt}600-MHz linewidth, and our analysis shows that operation in a single longitudinal mode (SLM) should be possible at somewhat reduced output levels. The simpler experimental task of producing SLM operation in a two-grating CO{sub 2} transversely excited atmospheric laser has also been accomplished.
- OSTI ID:
- 6148776
- Journal Information:
- Applied Optics; (United States), Vol. 30:30; ISSN 0003-6935
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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