Feasibility and conditions for the attainment of high output energy characteristics from a pulsed chemical HF laser utilizing an SF6–HI mixture

An investigation was made of the feasibility and conditions for the attainment of high output energy characteristics from an electron-beam-initiated SF₆–HI laser. A specific output energy of 8 J/liter was achieved. The maximum output energy per pulse from an SF₆–HI laser was found to be higher than that from an SF₆–H₂ laser. The presence of an external static magnetic field, inhibiting scattering of the initiating electrons, did not increase the maximum laser pulse energy.