ENHANCING DISCHARGE UNIFORMITY IN A MULTI-KILOWATT RADIO-FREQUENCY EXCITED CO2 SLAB LASER ARRAY

A computational model is reported which is able to accurately predict discharge uniformity in large-area electrodes for transverse rf-excite d CO2 lasers. The model has been employed in the development of a mult i-kW radial slab array. Shunt inductors are resonated directly with th e discharge impedance, thereby achieving excellent discharge uniformit y while eliminating the need for frequency stabilized power sources. E xperimental results suggest the model will generally be of major assis tance in optimizing large-area electrodes designs, and specifically in scaling slab laser systems to multi-kW levels. (C) 1996 American Inst itute of Physics.