Abstract

Interest in laser isotope separation has continued to spur the development of new IR laser systems. One laser still under consideration for this application is the 16-µm CO₂ bending-mode laser which operates on the 02°0→01¹0 vibrational transitions. At a previous conference¹ we reported preliminary results of laser operation on this CO₂ transition using pulsed electrical excitation of a cryogenically cooled CO₂;N₂;He mixture in a configuration similar to a conventional CO₂ longitudinal discharge laser. During the pulsed electrical discharge in this laser, the lower vibrational states of CO₂ are all populated.

© 1981 Optical Society of America