Resonantly enhanced method for generation of tunable, coherent vacuum ultraviolet radiation

Patent · Tue Jul 16 00:00:00 EDT 1985

OSTI ID:5812632

Glownia, J H; Sander, R K

Carbon Monoxide vapor is used to generate coherent, tunable vacuum ultraviolet radiation by third-harmonic generation using a single tunable dye laser. The presence of a nearby electronic level resonantly enhances the nonlinear susceptibility of this molecule allowing efficient generation of the vuv light at modest pump laser intensities, thereby reducing the importance of a six-photon multiple-photon ionization process which is also resonantly enhanced by the same electronic level but to higher order. By choosing the pump radiation wavelength to be of shorter wavelength than individual vibronic levels used to extend tunability stepwise from 154.4 to 124.6 nm, and the intensity to be low enough, multiple-photon ionization can be eliminated. Excitation spectra of the third-harmonic emission output exhibit shifts to shorter wavelength and broadening with increasing CO pressure due to phase matching effects. Increasing the carbon monoxide pressure, therefore, allows the substantial filling in of gaps arising from the stepwise tuning thereby providing almost continuous tunability over the quoted range of wavelength emitted.

• Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the Department of Energy
• Patent Number(s): US 4529944
• OSTI ID: 5812632
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

42 ENGINEERING
420300* -- Engineering-- Lasers-- (-1989)
CARBON COMPOUNDS
CARBON MONOXIDE
CARBON OXIDES
CHALCOGENIDES
COMPRESSION
DYE LASERS
ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION
ENERGY SPECTRA
FLUIDS
GASES
HARMONICS
LASERS
LIGHT SOURCES
LIQUID LASERS
OPTICAL PUMPING
OSCILLATIONS
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PRESSURE GRADIENTS
PUMPING
RADIATION SOURCES
RADIATIONS
RESONANCE
SPECTRA
TUNING
ULTRAVIOLET RADIATION
VACUUM STATES
VAPORS
WAVELENGTHS