Transversely excited gas laser

US4613971A · kind A · utility

Assignee

• Siemens Aktiengesellschaft · DE

Inventors

• Gerhard Brumme · Unterschleißheim, DE
• Ludger Grage · Eichenau, DE
• Hinrich Heynisch · Gräfelfing, DE
• Erwin Hubner · Grafing, DE

Key dates

• Filing date: Apr 11, 1984
• Grant date: Sep 23, 1986
• Expiry date: Apr 11, 2004

Classification

• Technology area (CPC H): Electricity
• CPC primary: H01S3/0384
• WIPO field: Optics
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

A transversely excited gas laser, includes: an elongated gas-filled discharge chamber having an optical axis; a main cathode electrode and a main anode electrode extended along the optical axis in the discharge chamber defining a main discharge space between the main cathode and the main anode electrodes through which the optical axis extends, the main electrodes bordering two sides of the main discharge space leaving two other sides open; two pairs of auxiliary electrodes each being extended parallel to the optical axis in vicinity of a respective one of the open sides of the main discharge space and mutually spaced apart by a given distance, each of the auxiliary electrodes including a conductor and a dielectric shell surrounding the conductor, each of the auxiliary electrodes being spaced from all of the other electrodes by a set breakdown distance; and a driving unit connected to the electrodes, the driving unit supplying different potentials to the main cathode and main anode electrodes producing a main electric discharge therebetween during operation of the gas laser, and the driving unit supplying different potentials to the pairs of auxiliary electrodes causing a corona dis…