Amplification of λ = 147 nm radiation from a barrier discharge in a mixture of krypton with xenon

Abstract

A study was made of the spectra of the VUV radiation emitted by a barrier discharge in a mixture of krypton and xenon at a pressure of 300 Torr with the xenon concentration 1015 — 1016 cm-3. Amplification of radiation at the λ = 146.9 nm wavelength of a resonant transition in the xenon atom with a gain of ∼0.1 cm-1 was observed. The physical model explaining this amplification was based on two main processes: the transfer of energy from excited krypton dimers to xenon atoms and amplification of the resonant xenon radiation in the wings of a collisionally broadened profile.