Pulsed gas laser emitting high-power beam of short wavelength

Claim 2

A laser comprising: a pair of flat nonconductive bodies separated by a narrow interspace, at least one of said bodies being a member with two parallel major faces composed of a solid material having a high dielectric constant; a housing disposed around said bodies and provided with a radiation-transparent window, said housing having a conductive wall portion in full-face contact with a first metallic layer on a major face of said member remote from said interspace; a second metallic layer in said interspace overlying part of the opposite major face of said member and defining a storage capacitance with said first layer; a third metallic layer coplanar with said second layer in said interspace overlying another part of said opposite face and defining a pulse-shaping capacitance with said first layer, said second and third layers having substantially rectilinear confronting edges defining an elongate cavity in said interspace; said cavity having an end adjacent said window; impedance means galvanically interconnecting said second and third layers; terminal means for connecting a source of charging voltage between said first and second layers; and circuit means including said conductive wall portion connected between said first and third layers for periodically discharging said pulse-shaping capacitance, thereby exciting a radiation-emitting gas in said elongate cavity.

Claim 3

A laser as defined in claim 1 wherein said housing comprises a generally cylindrical enclosure centered on an axis perpendicular to said faces.

Claim 4

A laser as defined in claim 2 wherein said circuit means further comprises a trigger circuit including a discharge electrode separated by a spark gap from said third layer.

Claim 5

A laser as defined in claim 3 wherein said discharge electrode confronts a counterelectrode on an outer periphery of said third layer.

Claim 6

A laser as defined in claim 4 wherein said enclosure has a metallic peripheral wall forming an extension of said conductive wall portion, said discharge electrode being seated in said peripheral wall in conductive contact therewith.

Claim 7

A laser as defined in claim 3 wherein said discharge electrode extends from said first layer toward said third layer in a bore of said member transverse to said layers.

Claim 8

A laser as defined in claim 3 wherein said trigger circuit further includes a starting electrode spacedly juxtaposed with said discharge electrode.

Claim 9

A laser as defined in claim 3 wherein said spark gap is lodged in a compartment fluidically separated from said elongate cavity.

Claim 10

A laser comprising: a pair of flat nonconductive bodies separated by a narrow interspace, at least one of said bodies being a member with two parallel major faces composed of a ceramic material having a dielectric constant of least 80; a first metallic layer on a major face of said member remote from said interspace; a second metallic layer in said interspace overlying part of the opposite major face of said member and defining a storage capacitance with said first layer; a third metallic layer coplanar with said second layer in said interspace overlying another part of said opposite face and defining a pulse-shaping capacitance with said first layer, said second and third layers having substantially rectilinear confronting edges defining an elongate cavity in said interspace; thermoelectric means adjacent said member for maintaining said ceramic material at a temperature close to its Curie point; impedance means galvanically interconnecting said second and third layers; terminal means for connecting a source of charging voltage between said first and second layers; circuit means connected between said first and third layers for periodically discharging said pulse-shaping capacitance, thereby exciting a radiation-emitting gas in said elongate cavity; and housing means sealing said elongate cavity against the surrounding atmosphere, said housing means being provided with a window transparent to the emitted radiation adjacent one end of said elongate cavity.

Claim 11

A laser comprising: a pair of flat nonconductive bodies separated by a narrow interspace, at least one of said bodies being a member with two parallel major faces composed of a ceramic material having a dielectric constant of least 80; a first metallic layer on a major face of said member remote from said interspace; a second metallic layer in said interspace overlying part of the opposite major face of said member and defining a storage capacitance with said first layer; a third metallic layer coplanar with said second layer in said interspace overlying another part of said opposite face and defining a pulse-shaping capacitance with said first layer, said second and third layers having substantially rectilinear confronting edges defining an elongate cavity in said interspace; thermoelectric means adjacent said member for maintaining said ceramic material at a temperature close to its Curie point; impedance means galvanically interconnecting said second and third layers; terminal means for connecting a source of charging voltage between said first and second layers; circuit means connected between said first and third layers for periodically discharging said pulse-shaping capacitance, thereby exciting a radiation-emitting gas in said elongate cavity; and housing means sealing said elongate cavity against the surrounding atmosphere, said housing means being provided with a window transparent to the emitted radiation adjacent one end of said elongate cavity.

Claim 12

A laser comprising: a pair of flat nonconductive bodies separated by a narrow interspace, at least one of said bodies being a member with two parallel major faces composed of a ceramic material having a high dielectric constant of at least 80; a first metallic layer on a major face of said member remote from said interspace; a second metallic layer in said interspace overlying part of the opposite major face of said member and defining a storage capacitance with said first layer; a third metallic layer coplanar with said second layer in said interspace overlying another part of said opposite face and defining a pulse-shaping capacitance with said first layer, said second and third layers having substantially rectilinear confronting edges defining an elongate cavity in said interspace; impedance means galvanically interconnecting said second and third layers; terminal means for connecting a source of charging voltage between said first and second layers; circuit means connected between said first and third layers for periodically discharging said pulse-shaping capacitance, thereby exciting a radiation-emitting gas in said elongate cavity; and housing means sealing said elongate cavity against the surrounding atmosphere for confining said gas therein under a pressure at least on the order of one bar, said housing means being provided with a window semireflective to the emitted radiation adjacent one end of said elongate cavity and with an opposite reflector for said radiation adjacent the other end of said cavity.

Claim 13

A laser comprising: a pair of flat nonconductive bodies separated by a narrow interspace, at least one of said bodies being a member with two parallel major faces composed of a ceramic material having a high dielectric constant of at least 80; a first metallic layer on a major face of said member remote from said interspace; a second metallic layer in said interspace overlying part of the opposite major face of said member and defining a storage capacitance with said first layer; a third metallic layer coplanar with said second layer in said interspace overlying another part of said opposite face and defining a pulse-shaping capacitance with said first layer, said second and third layers having substantially rectilinear confronting edges defining an elongate cavity in said interspace; impedance means galvanically interconnecting said second and third layers; terminal means for connecting a source of charging voltage between said first and second layers; circuit means connected between said first and third layers for periodically discharging said pulse-shaping capacitance, thereby exciting a radiation-emitting gas in said elongate cavity; and housing means sealing said elongate cavity against the surrounding atmosphere for confining said gas therein under a pressure at least on the order of one bar, said housing means being provided with a window semireflective to the emitted radiation adjacent one end of said elongate cavity and with an opposite reflector for said radiation adjacent the other end of said cavity.

Claim 14

A laser comprising: a pair of flat nonconductive bodies separated by a narrow interspace, at least one of said bodies being a member with two parallel major faces composed of a ceramic material having a dielectric constant of at least 80 and a Curie point substantially below ambient temperature; a first metallic layer on a major face of said member remote from said interspace; a second metallic layer in said interspace overlying part of the opposite major face of said member and defining a storage capacitance with said first layer; a third metallic layer coplanar with said second layer in said interspace overlying another part of said opposite face and defining a pulse-shaping capacitance with said first layer, said second and third layers having substantially rectilinear confronting edges defining an elongate cavity in said interspace; temperature-control means adjacent said member for maintaining said ceramic material at a temperature close to its Curie point; impedance means galvanically interconnecting said second and third layers; terminal means for connecting a source of charging voltage between said first and second layers; circuit means connected between said first and third layers for periodically discharging said pulse-shaping capacitance, thereby exciting a radiation-emitting gas in said elongate cavity; and housing means sealing said elongate cavity against the surrounding atmosphere, said housing means being provided with a window transparent to the emitted radiation adjacent one end of said elongate cavity.

Claim 15

A laser comprising: a pair of flat nonconductive bodies separated by a narrow interspace, at least one of said bodies being a member with two parallel major faces composed of a ceramic material having a dielectric constant of at least 80 and a Curie point substantially below ambient temperature; a first metallic layer on a major face of said member remote from said interspace; a second metallic layer in said interspace overlying part of the opposite major face of said member and defining a storage capacitance with said first layer; a third metallic layer coplanar with said second layer in said interspace overlying another part of said opposite face and defining a pulse-shaping capacitance with said first layer, said second and third layers having substantially rectilinear confronting edges defining an elongate cavity in said interspace; temperature-control means adjacent said member for maintaining said ceramic material at a temperature close to its Curie point; impedance means galvanically interconnecting said second and third layers; terminal means for connecting a source of charging voltage between said first and second layers; circuit means connected between said first and third layers for periodically discharging said pulse-shaping capacitance, thereby exciting a radiation-emitting gas in said elongate cavity; and housing means sealing said elongate cavity against the surrounding atmosphere, said housing means being provided with a window transparent to the emitted radiation adjacent one end of said elongate cavity.

Claim 16

A laser as defined in claim 11 wherein said ceramic material is KDP.