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US 4,736,381 AGranted
Optically pumped divalent metal halide lasers
AssigneeThe Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois
InventorsJ. Gary Eden, Dennis P. Greene, Kevin P. Killeen
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Abstract
Laser systems, exhibiting energy conversion efficiencies greater than 20%, employ divalent metal halides, dissociated either electrically or optically, and pumped optically, usually by means of an arc lamp or an incoherent flashlamp. Either pulsed and continuous-wave lasing can be effected in or near the visible region.
Claims20
A laser system, emitting energy in or near the visible region of the spectrum, comprising:
- (a) enclosure means;
- (b) a molecular divalent metal halide and an inert buffer gas, present within said enclosure means;
- (c) a heat source, for vaporization of said molecular divalent metal halide, capable of maintaining said enclosure means at a temperature within the range from about 50.degree. to about 550.degree. C.;
- (d) a source of dissociative energy, located in proximity to said enclosure means and in communication therewith, for effecting dissociation of said vaporized molecular divalent metal halide into diatomic metal halide fragments thereof present in a ground electronic energy state;
- (e) optical pumping means, located in proximity to said enclosure means and in communication therewith;
- whereby the diatomic metal halide fragments are raised from the ground electron energy state to one or more vibrational energy levels of a low-lying electronic excited state;
- and
- (f) an optical cavity, disposed about said enclosure means, aligned to obtain lasing from optical transitions in which the diatomic metal halide fragments return to their ground electronic energy state.
5 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.