Investigation of a chemical HF laser utilizing a highpressure H2–SF6 mixture

An investigation was made of the energy characteristics of a chemical HF laser utilizing an H₂–SF₆ mixture and excited by a beam of relativistic electrons. Efficient lasing was obtained at gas mixture pressures up to 4.5 atm, a specific output energy of 50 J/liter being obtained at 1.5 atm. It should be possible to tune continuously the lasing frequency in a range 2.2 cm^–1 centered on each vibrational-rotational line and thus build a highpower tunable laser of the kind required in laser-chemical investigations.