Control of the duration of lasing of a copper vapor laser

Abstract

In the present article we propose a high-speed technique for controlling the duration of radiation, based on a study of the laws governing the variation of the shape of the lasing pulse in the copper vapor. Attention is given to the possibility of controlling the laser output characteristics (energy E, pulse power Wp, and average lasing power W) in the generator--amplifier system by means of regulating the duration of the radiation of the timing-pulse generator rg and the time-delay t~ a between the excitation pulses of the active elements (AE) of the generator and the amplifier. The article consists of three parts. i. Pulse Duration and Shape of the Radiation of the Timing-Pulse Generator. An investigation of the duration and shape of the lasing pulse of a CVL was carried out in which the buffer gas pressure, the discharge gap voltage, the pulse repetition rate (PRR), the temperature regime of the active element, and the resonator geometry were all varied. In these experiments active elements with discharge channel diameter from i0 to 40 mm and discharge gap length from 20 to i00 cm were used. The layout of the setup with which the investigations were carried out is similar to that shown in [8]. One to four TGI-IO00/25 thyratrons, which were connected in parallel, were used as commutators. The capability of optical isolation and further separate measuremerit of the lasing pulse on both of the work wavelengths: %1 = 510.6 nm and %2 = 578.2 nm was incorporated. Control of the current and discharge voltage pulses was realized with Rogovskian belts and low-inductance compensated voltage dividers. The average generating power on eaGh of the lasing lines was recorded with the help of an IMO-2 power meter. The duration and shape of the lasing pulses were measured on an S7-10A fast oscilloscope with the help of an FK-19 coaxial photoelement. The active elements operated in the "selfheating" regime, and neon was used as the buffer gas. Since any variation of the pumping parameters of the active medium (current, voltage, and PRR) leads to a change in the