Jersey Nuclear-avco Isotopes, Inc.

Avco Everett Research Laboratory, Inc.

Richard G Morton

Michael E Mack

Irving Itzkan

Jaime A Woodroffe

Herbert P Kent

Henry R Aldag

A hybrid laser resonator for use with a transverse flow waveguide laser includes cylindrical optical elements for coupling together regions of a thin slab-shaped laser medium operating in the waveguide mode through a set of reflectors which define the ends of the laser cavity. Separate waveguide cylindrical optics which focus in the thin dimension of the slab are combined with a negative cylindrical lens which diverges in the thick dimension of the slab. The negative lens causes an unstable resonator condition to exist in the thick or fluid flow direction so as to prevent narrow isolated horizontal lasing bands and thus provide a nearly diffraction limited beam quality in both thick and thin dimensions.

Unstable waveguide laser resonator

A coaxial flashlamp for pulsed operation at high repetition rates having an annular, light emitting discharge path between fluid cooled coaxially disposed, inner and outer optically transparent tubes. Electrodes are provided at opposite ends of the discharge paths and a gas such as Xenon is provided between the electrodes. The gas is discharged by confinement between the two tubes, forced to assume a dispersed shape which permits more efficient cooling at the discharge borders by fluid coolant inside the inner tube and around the outer tube.

High pulse repetition rate coaxial flashlamp

For use in a pulsed-laser lidar such as a laser ceilometer, there are shown several examples of signal processing means for separating desired pulses due to targets such as clouds from strong background signals due to suspended particles causing poor visibility. The several examples belong to a class of means having the property of applying, to an electrical signal pulse waveform, a time-distributed signed electrical weighting function having negligible total weight, with alternations of sign of weights separated by intervals of the order of the width of the desired pulses.

Laser ceilometer signal processing means

A fluid laser having a flow channel between fluid inlet and active lasing region which reduces medium heating and resulting medium disturbances. The channel includes a thin optically transparent, thermally insulating layer directly bordering the medium. The thin layer rests upon a metallic heat sink, typically cooled, which receives and removes radiated energy from the active region, preventing it from heating the medium. The thin insulating layer permits the heat sink to be cooler than the medium without causing thermal effects in the medium. The more homogeneous medium resulting from such treatment contributes to better laser beam quality.

Fluid laser flow channel liner

A flow channel for a dye laser having means for reducing thermal and pressure variations in the flowing laser medium particularly in the vicinity of active lasing in order to permit high power and high pulse rate lasing with a high quality, low divergence output beam. Pressure disturbances and turbulence are minimized with a number of flow design techniques including a configured input conduit for even pressure drop, a set of turbulence reducing screens, as well as a hydraulic pressure damping capacitor on both input and output ends of the flow channel, either side of the excitation window. A porous wall is used to exhaust the medium and isolate the lasing region from downstream effects. In addition, cooling of the conduit just upstream of the region of active lasing reduces temperature disturbances resulting from applied excitation to further minimize its disturbing effect on laser beam quality and lasing efficiency.

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Richland, WA, United States of America

Richard G Morton