Pulsed hollow-cathode ion lasers: pumping and lasing parameters

Optimal discharge conditions have been experimentally found for ion lasers excited in the hollow-cathode discharge plasma by microsecond current pulses by pumping working atoms in secondkind collisions with ions and metastable buffer-gas atoms. Measurements of the output power of krypton ion and zinc-, cadmium-, mercury-, thallium-, copper-, and gallium-vapour lasers in tubes with cathodes of different diameters showed that the pulse power reaches several tens of watts, and the average power obtained with cathodes 2 cm in diameter and a length of 40 cm or more approaches 1 W. Lasing in most media is observed simultaneously at several lines (the multi-wavelength regime). Lasing on a three-component (He — Kr — Hg) mixture is realised in the multi-wavelength regime at blue, red, and IR lines.