Abstract

Although recently gain measurements of rare-gas halide lasers were carried out, these measurements have been done only for direct e-beam pumped and avalanche discharge pumped lasers. We studied e-beam-switched-discharge-pumped KrF lasers to obtain detailed experimental data on relationships between discharge characteristics and small-signal gain coefficient g₀. As a result, we obtained a high gain coefficient g₀ of greater than 11% cm⁻¹ and clarified the relationship between discharge stability and g₀. On the discharge stability associated with e-beam-controlled-discharge-pumped KrF lasers many investigations have been performed^1,2. Although there is no report clarifying experimentally the relationship between discharge stability and g₀ we report here the experimental relationship between discharge stability and g₀. The e-beam-switched-discharge pumping, which is a new pumping method, was developed by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in 1978.³ In e-beam-switched-discharge pumping, discharge is switched by the injection of e-beam after the voltage is applied slowly between discharge electrodes at voltage below the self-breakdown voltage. This pumping scheme is thought to be similar to the e-beam-controlled-discharge, but in this pumping scheme the applied voltage is higher than the voltage sustaining the discharge.

© 1983 Optical Society of America