Patent · US Expired

Multiple beam gas laser and method

US4864587A · kind A · utility

2Cited by
5References
11Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventor

Key dates

Filing dateSep 2, 1986
Grant dateSep 5, 1989
Priority date
Expiry dateSep 2, 2006

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
  • CPC primaryY10S372/70
  • WIPO fieldOptics
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

A pulsed gas laser having two spaced optical resonators each associated with a pair of high voltage electrodes. The first and second pairs of electrodes are positioned within a common plasma chamber including means for circulating a laser gas successively between the two pairs of electrodes. A common heat exchanger removes the heat energy from the two regions of plasma excitation. A high voltage pulse generator connected to the electrodes includes timing means for delaying the application of high voltage pulses to the second pair of electrodes, the delay being either (a) less than the time required for an acoustic shock wave to travel through the lasing gas from the first to the second pair of electrodes or (b) longer than the time required for the shock wave created by the discharge of the first pair of electrodes to die out. Each optical resonator is provided with an adjustable mirror arranged to reflect laser pulses to and from a mirror grating. The mirrors are adjusted angularly to change the wavelength of the laser pulses.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.