CO2 laser using electrochemical transformation of organic compounds

Abstract

A novel CO2 laser using electrochemical transformation of organic compounds (ECTO) has been developed. cw CO2 laser action was obtained by applying an electric discharge to the air, which contained organic vapors such as alcohols and benzene derivatives. The CO2 molecules produced by the chemical reaction in the laser tube and the N2 molecules contained in the air were excited by the discharge. The ECTO CO2 laser produced an output power of 7 W, which was comparable to the power obtained from a conventional CO2 laser gas mixture.