Abstract

An efficient short-wavelength chemical laser will be a device which couples a highly constrained chemical pumping mechanism with an atomic or molecular species whose spectroscopic characteristics are appropriate for lasing. Research in the past several years has identified a number of candidates (e.g., interhalogens, group VI atoms and molecules, CN, NO, and others) which are capable of lasing in the UV or visible regions. Recent work in our laboratory has sought means by which the very highly constrained reactions of azide radicals may be used to pump these known candidate systems. The electronic ground state of N₃ correlates adiabatically to an excited N(²D) atom and a ground state N₂ molecule. As a consequence, R + N₃ reactions effectively proceed on excited state potential energy surfaces and are very strongly constrained to produce electronically excited metastable NR molecules. This view is supported by experimental studies of reactions of N₃ with a number of first and second row atoms.^1,2 The products of these reactions are useful as either energy storage agents or lasing species in a number of potential SWCL systems. N₃ reactions can be operated in either continuous or pulsed modes. Pulsed experiments with these systems hold promise for early tests at reagent densities commensurate with measurable gain levels.

© 1986 Optical Society of America