High-efficiency, high-energy operation of an intense electron beam initiated HF chemical laser using a mixture containing a heavy fluoride MoF6

Abstract

High-efficiency and high-energy operation of HF chemical lasers was simultaneously realized using a low pressure mixture of H2/F2/O2/MoF6 initiated by an intense electron beam. The addition of small amounts of MoF6 gas to the mixture of H2/F2/O2 resulted in an increase in laser output energy and electrical and chemical efficiencies. A HF laser energy obtained from a mixture containing 17.9 Torr of MoF6 was 3.7 kJ (136 J/l) with a pulse width of 190 ns full width at half-maximum. The corresponding electrical efficiency and chemical efficiency are 189% and 15.2%, respectively, with a low pressure (362.4 Torr) mixture of H2/F2/O2/MoF6=30/242/72.5/17.9 Torr.