High-power tunable lasers and their applications to photochemistry and isotope separation

The development status of laser light sources useful in the initiation and study of photophysical and photochemical processes, including both UV and IR devices providing high photon fluxes and a degree of wavelength tunability, is reported, with attention to design principles and the experimental apparatus used in laboratory testing. The applications to which these lasers may be put includes photopolymerization, isotopic synthesis, the production of vibrationally excited states, pyrolysis and photoisomerization. The laser devices discussed are the pulsed IR TEA laser, the photochemical iodine laser and the neodymium glass laser, with detailed consideration being given to hydrogen fluoride laser operating principles.