Discharge formation systems for generating atomic iodine in a pulse-periodic oxygen–iodine laser

Generation characteristics of a pulse-periodic oxygen–iodine laser with the electro-discharge production of atomic iodine were compared with inductively stabilised edged or anisotropic- resistive cathodes used for ignition of the volume discharge. The discharge was initiated by the radiation of a barrier discharge from the side of a grid anode. It was found that at equal specific electrical energy depositions to the gas-discharge plasma, the system with the anisotropic-resistive cathode provides a more stable and uniform volume discharge with the possibility of varying the composition and pressure of working mixtures over a wide range and a greater specific extraction of laser energy is observed (up to 2.4 J L^-1). At a high pulse repetition rate of laser pulses (50 – 100 Hz) and long duration of the pulse trains (longer than a minute) the surface of anisotropic-resistive cathode became eroded.