Electron beam laser optical scanning device

Claim 1

AN OPTICAL SCANNING DEVICE FOR TRANSMITTING GRAPHIC INFORMATION IN THE FORM OF MODULATED ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION, COMPRISING MEANS FOR PRODUCING ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION BY STIMULATED EMISSION FROM A LIGHT RESONANT CAVITY INCLUDING A SEMICONDUCTOR CRYSTAL, COMPRISING A LIGHT RESONANT CAVITY INCLUDING A II-VI COMPOUND DIRECT BAND-GAP SEMICONDUCTOR CRYSTAL HAVING A PAIR OF MAJOR BROAD OPTICALLY SMOOTH OPPOSING PARALLEL SURFACES; MEANS FOR PROVIDING ALMOST TOTALLY REFLECTIVE SURFACES PARALLEL TO EACH MAJOR BROAD CRYSTAL SURFACE FOR DEFINING SAID CAVITY, WITH ONE REFLECTIVE SURFACE BEING MORE REFLECTIVE THAN THE OTHER, AND MEANS FOR EXCITING SAID CRYSTAL INTO STIMULATED EMISSION BY DIRECTING AT ONE OF SAID MAJOR BROAD SURFACES AN ELECTRON BEAM HAVING SUFFICIENT ENERGY TO CREATE IN SAID CRYSTAL, AN ACTIVE REGION EXCITED INTO A STATE OF STIMULATED EMISSION CORRESPONDING TO THE PENETRATION REGION OF THE ELECTRON BEAM, TO CAUSE COHERENT ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION TO BE EMITTED FROM SAID CAVITY THROUGH THE LEAST REFLECTIVE OF THE REFLECTIVE SURFACES IN A DIRECTION WHICH IS SUBSTANTIALLY NORMAL TO THE MAJOR BROAD CRYSTAL SURFACES; WHEREIN WHEN SAID COHERENT ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION IS EMITTED, THE ACTIVE REGION DEPTH IS LESS THAN THE CRYSTAL THICKNESS IN THE DIRECTION NORMAL TO THE PARALLEL SURFACES; MEANS FOR SCANNING THE ELECTRON BEAM ACROSS SAID ONE BROAD CRYSTAL SURFACE; AND MEANS FOR MODULATING THE ELECTRON BEAM.