Experimental study of the energy balance in the interaction of a pulsed CO2 laser with metal and insulating targets in air

Measurements were made of components of the energy balance in the interaction of pulsed CO₂ laser radiation with Dural, glass, quartz, ebonite, and Plexiglas in air at atmospheric pressure. At laser energy densities between 1 and 20 J/cm² and in the spectral range 0.2–7 μm, the re-emission of radiation by the laser plasma was found to be less than 1 %. At energy densities exceeding 10 J/cm², up to 90% of the laser energy failed to reach the irradiated surface.