US3628174A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Optically pumped submillimeter-wave and millimeter-wave gas lasers
Assignee: AT&T Inc
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Filing: 1970-04-01
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Granted: 1971-12-14
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Expires: 1990-04-01
Abstract
Abstract There is disclosed the first optically pumped submillimeter-wave laser. Oscillation is obtained on six pure rotational transitions of wavelength longer than 400 micrometers in methyl fluoride pumped at 9.55 micrometers and on several other pure rotational transitions between 280 micrometers and 687 micrometers in methyl alcohol vapor pumped at wavelengths between 9.52 and 9.71 micrometers. Vinyl chloride gas has yielded oscillation similarly at 388 and 630 micrometers when optically pumped by continuouswave radiation at 9.55 and 10.61 micrometers, respectively. Other active media include molecular gases having dipole moments.
Inventors
- 👤 Thomas James Bridges
- 👤 Tao-Yuan Chang
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-26 12:33
CPC Classifications
H; H01; H01S; H01S3/00; H01S3/09; H01S3/091; H01S3/094; H01S3/02; H01S3/03; H01S3/0305; H01S3/05; H01S3/08; H01S3/086; H01S3/14; H01S3/22; H01S3/223
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 11
Claim 1
Independent Claim
17 words
Apparatus according to claim 1 in which the active constituent consists of molecules having a carbon-fluorine bond.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
44 words
Apparatus according to claim 1 in which the active constituent is selected from the group consisting of methyl fluoride, vinyl chloride, formic acid, fully halinatEd hydrocarbons having at most three carbon atoms per molecule, and alcohols having at most three carbon atoms per molecule.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
16 words
Apparatus according to claim 1 in which the active constituent consists of methyl fluoride (CH3F) molecules.
Claim 4
Independent Claim
109 words
An apparatus for amplifying a supplied beam of submillimeter radiation, comprising a gaseous medium including as an active constituent a molecular gas having a vibrational-rotational absorption and an electric dipole moment, means for pumping said medium with radiation of wavelength matching the wavelength of said vibrational-rotational absorption, thereby selectively inverting the population of a pure rotational transition of said gas at the frequency of said supplied beam of radiation, means for admitting the supplied beam to said gas to stimulate the emission of radiation from said rotational transition, and means for extracting a portion of the supplied beam and the emitted radiation as an amplified beam of submillimeter-wave radiation.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
61 words
Apparatus according to claim 1 in which the means for stimulating the emission of radiation comprises an optical resonator having an optical axis, the pumping means comprises a source of coherent pumping light supplied axially to said optical resonator, and the extracting means comprises a beam-splitter capable of angularly separating the pumping light and the radiation emitted from the rotational transition.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
32 words
Apparatus according to claim 6 in which the active constituent is a hydrocarbon having a carbon-fluorine bond and the source of coherent pumping light includes a laser oscillating at about 10 micrometers.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
59 words
Apparatus according to claim 7 in which the pumping laser is a gaseous molecular laser adapted to supply coherent pumping light at about 9.55 micrometers, and the active constituent of the apparatus is methyl fluoride gas, the stimulating means including an optical resonator including metallic-coated reflectors and being adapted to promote oscillations at about 452, 496 and 541 micrometers.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
60 words
Apparatus according to claim 7 in which the pumping laser is a gaseous molecular laser and the active constituent of the apparatus is methyl alcohol vapor, the stimulating means including an optical resonator including metallic-coated reflectors and being adapted to promote oscillations at a wavelength near one of the following wavelengths: 280 micrometers, 391 micrometers, 565 micrometers and 687 micrometers.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
15 words
Apparatus according to claim 1 in which the active constituent consists of methyl alcohol molecules.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
56 words
Apparatus according to claim 7 in which the pumping laser is a gaseous molecular laser and the active constituent of the apparatus is vinyl chloride vapor, the stimulating means including an optical resonator including metallic-coated reflectors and being adapted to promote oscillations at a wavelength near one of the following wavelengths: 388 micrometers and 630 micrometers.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
15 words
Apparatus according to claim 1 in which the active constituent consists of vinyl chloride vapor.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
No citation records indexed.
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1974-12-13 | 1975-06-14 | 1975-12-14 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1978-12-13 | 1979-06-14 | 1979-12-14 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1982-12-13 | 1983-06-14 | 1983-12-14 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |