COMPACT XEF (C-]A) AND IODINE LASER OPTICALLY PUMPED BY A SURFACE DISCHARGE

A compact surface-discharge laser system has been developed and applie d to optically pumping the bound --> free XeF (C --> A) transition tha t lases in the blue-green (475-490-nm) and the P-2(1/2) --> P-2(3/2) t ransition of atomic iodine at 1.315 mu m. Employing no high voltage or current switches and occupying only similar to 1 m(2) of table space, this device has an active length of similar to 50 cm and at present d issipates >8 MW/cm of surface discharge for a stored energy of 2.5 kJ. With 5% output coupling at 485 nm, energies of >50 mJ are obtained on the XeF (C --> A) transition in 1.5-mu s (FWHM) pulses. The spectrum of the untuned oscillator is virtually free of absorption features and has a width of similar to 15 nm (FWHM). Pulse energies exceeding 0.7 J have been obtained for iodine at 1.3 mu m with an output coupling of only 10%.