Temporal structure of argon laser emission under passive mode-locking conditions

An experimental investigation was made of the temporal structure of the radiation from an argon laser having a resonator containing an absorbing element. An investigation was made of the range of existence of a complex temporal structure as a function of the-relationship between amplification and absorption in the resonator. Continuous tuning of the internal between output pulses in the range 2–30 nsec was achieved. The temporal characteristics of the radiation were only slightly inferior to those obtained under active longitudinal mode-locking conditions.