Laser on mixtures of nitrogen with electronegative gases pumped by a transverse discharge from a generator with inductive energy storage: Theory and experiment

Lasing and discharge characteristics of a nitrogen laser pumped by a transverse discharge from a generator with an inductive energy storage and a semiconductor current interrupter are investigated experimentally. A numerical model is proposed and the operation of a nitrogen–electronegative gas mixture laser is simulated. It is shown both theoretically and experimentally that admixtures of electronegative gases make it possible to control the laser pulse shape at the C³Π_u–B³Π_g transition of nitrogen. Laser pulses at a wavelength of 337.1 nm, consisting of two peaks, as well as rectangular pulses of duration 40 – 50 ns, are obtained in mixtures of nitrogen with NF₃ and SF₆ due to an increase in the electron attachment coefficient and an increase in the electric field. The output UV energy is ~25 mJ.