Influence of hydrogen additive and excitation circuits on the output performance of barium vapor laser

Abstract

The output performances of barium vapor laser with and without hydrogen additive excited by pulsed discharge with Blumlein circuit were experimentally investiga ted. The result indicates that the laser output power increases two times with 1.5% hydrogen mixed into the neon buffer gas. Based on this experimental result,this paper further compares the working characteristics of barium vapor laser w ith interactive circuit and Blumlein circuit, and finds that the interactive cir cuit can greatly improve the laser output power and its efficiency. The maximum laser power of 3W and efficiency of 0.4% have been obtained at 1.5μm laser line. The dependence of laser power on working parameters is measured and discuss ed, and the mechanisms of hydrogen additive and interactive circuit for impr ovement of the laser performance are qualitatively analyzed.