Enhanced ultraviolet fluorescence due to selective optical pumping with extreme ultraviolet line radiation

Thesis/Dissertation · Tue Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1985

OSTI ID:5336440

Trebes, J E

In recent efforts to develop XUV and x-ray lasers, resonant photo-excitation has been proposed as a possible pumping mechanism for producing population inversions. In this scheme, intense line radiation from one ion species is used to pump selectively a nearly coincident absorption transition in a different ion species. Electrons are pumped from the ground state to a highly excited state, producing a population inversion between excited states within the pumped ion. This thesis presents a series of experiments in which Al(III) 3s-5p 56 nm XUV line radiation from a laser produced Al plasma is used to pump the CII 3p-5d 56 nm absorption transition in a C vacuum arc. The pumping results in UV enhanced fluorescence on the CII 3p-5d 213.8 nm transition and on transitions collisionally coupled to the 5d state. Time resolved measurements of these fluorescence channels are presented. These results are found to be in qualitative agreement with a collisional radiative model of the pumping process. The limitations of the Al(III)-CII optical pumping system for producing UV laser are discussed. A new class of optically pumped lasers is proposed that avoids these limitations. The new class, based on Be-like ions, offers potential lasing lines from 200 nm to 20 nm. Parameter regimes for lasing are calculated.

• Research Organization: Yale Univ., New Haven, CT (USA)
• OSTI ID: 5336440
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

42 ENGINEERING
420300* -- Engineering-- Lasers-- (-1989)
ALUMINIUM IONS
CARBON IONS
CHARGED PARTICLES
ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION
ENERGY LEVELS
EXCITED STATES
IONS
LASERS
OPTICAL PUMPING
POPULATION INVERSION
PUMPING
RADIATIONS
ULTRAVIOLET RADIATION