Some features of the use of a mixture of H2–He gases as the active medium of an optically pumped laser

An analysis is made of the conditions for lasing as a result of the ²Σ–²Σ transition in the HEH* excimer subjected to optical pumping. It is shown that the gain of an H₂–He mixture can reach ~5 × 10^–2 cm^–1. Such a mixture is thermally stable and can be heated to 6 × 10³ K. The specific output energy is then ~ 5 kJ/g or ~ 5 J/cm³.