Optimisation of the thermal regime in rf CO2 lasers with large-area planar electrodes

A considerable (by a factor of 5 or more) increase in the output power was achieved by the excitation of the active medium of a CO₂ laser in a slit gap on condition that the ratio of the transverse dimensions of the discharge channel exceeded 8:1. It was found that one-dimensional cooling of the active medium in a slit discharge structure required a factor of 2.38 reduction in the volume density of the pump power, compared with two-dimensional cooling in discharge channels of square cross section. The fall of the unsaturated gain on reduction in the volume density of the pump power could be partly compensated by an approximately 30% reduction in the total pressure of the gaseous mixture.