Electron beam-pumped gas laser system

Claim 1

An electron beam-initiated electrical-discharge gas laser system comprising: means defining a containment vessel; a gaseous lasing medium under high pressure contained in said containment vessel; electron accelerator means operatively connected to said containment vessel through an electron beam dispersing means for directing beams of high energy electron pulses through said containment vessel, said electron beam dispersing means utilized for dispersing the electron pulses from said accelerator means to conform substantially with the cross-sectional area of said containment vessel; said containment vessel including a pair of oppositely positioned electrically conductive members defining large effective area plate-like electrodes forming a pair of walls of said containment vessel, a pair of oppositely positioned insulating walls transparent to light connected with said firstmentioned pair of walls, and a pair of oppositely positioned walls transparent to high energy electrons connected with both said pair of walls; means operatively connected to said large effective area plate-like electrodes for impressing across the electrodes a voltage less than the breakdown voltage of said pressurized gaseous medium contained within said vessel; and means providing a light path through said pair of light transparent walls and said pressurized gaseous medium within said vessel; whereby beams of electron pulses from said accelerator, dispersed by said dispersing means, passes through said gaseous medium ionizing it slightly and triggering a large uniform electrical discharge between said electrodes exciting the medium and creating a large population inversion producing a hi-gain medium thereby amplifying light passing through said light transparent walls of said vessel and said hi-gain medium contained within said vessel.