Abstract

A technique using metal foil electrodes to produce segmented metal vapor plasmas in a recombination laser device has resulted in laser oscillation on 30 transitions in lithium, aluminum, calcium, and copper where the formation of segmented plasmas and subsequent production of laser action was not previously possible using bulk electrodes of these metals. Laser action was observed in the neutral and ion species, with emission wavelengths from 569.6 to 5460 nm as reported in Table I. Twenty- nine of these transitions have never previously been made to exhibit laser action by any excitation means. The use of foil electrodes should further extend the class of metal vapor recombination lasers when applied to additional metals.

© 1982 Optical Society of America