UNIDIRECTIONALITY OF AN OPTICALLY PUMPED FAR-INFRARED RING LASER

An experimental and theoretical investigation has been made on the uni directional operation of an optically pumped far infrared ring laser. A ring laser operating on the 119 mu m line of CH3OH experiences rever sal of output direction in either case of (a) the pump frequency being tuned across the line center of the infrared pump transition or (b) t he fir cavity being tuned across the far infrared line center. A model based on two-mode laser theory predicts the output directionality of the optically pumped fir ring laser.