Electroionization CO laser pumped by microsecond pulses

Energy, time, and spectral characteristics of a free-running pulsed CO-laser with a cryogenically cooled active medium pumped by short (approximately 1 microsecond) EI laser pulses of up to 500 kW/cu cm amagat are investigated experimentally. The study revealed that efficiencies of 20 percent can be achieved in such systems, with the peak power at the leading edge of the radiation pulse of a few kW/cu cm amagat. Furthermore, a laser spectrum shift toward higher frequencies was observed, resulting in the 40 percent of the total output energy being contained in the 6-5, 5-4, and 4-3 vibrational bands. It is concluded that the use of electron guns with pointed cathodes in pulsed EI CO laser systems is fully justified when high peak powers near 5 microns need to be obtained.