Influence of water vapor on the gain of a gasdynamic N2O laser

Theoretical and experimental investigations were made of the influence of water vapor on the gain of a gasdynamic N₂O laser. The results of measurements were in good agreement with the calculations. In contrast to a CO₂ laser, a considerable gain was obtained in a binary N₂O–N₂ mixture. The addition of a small amount of water vapor to this mixture had practically no effect on the gain. The value of the gain was fairly constant (of the order of 0.5X10^–2 cm^–1) in a wide range of temperatures (1100–1700°K) and pressures (20–60 atm).