Operating regimes of a linear gas laser with a phase-anisotropic resonator

The method of the Jones vectors and matrices is used in a theoretical analysis and calculations of the parameters of single- and two-mode emission at λ = 0.63 μm from an He–Ne laser with an anisotropic resonator and orthogonally polarized modes. A study is made of the dependence of the lasing regimes on the polarization of an electromagnetic field in the resonator and on the spatial overlap of the mode fields. The calculations are carried out allowing for the elastic depolarizing collisions between the atoms of the active medium. The results of the calculations are presented graphically. The graphs identifying the stability regions of the different lasing regimes demonstrate clearly the influence of the type of polarization of the radiation and of the spatial overlap of the fields on the mode competition processes. The results obtained can be used in the development of lasers with anisotropic resonators generating two orthogonally polarized modes whose frequencies differ by an amount that can be varied in a wide range.