Extended use of the sealed HBr chemical laser by "Cl2activation"

A new passivation technique, which we call "Cl2activation," has been developed for the pulsed HBr chemical laser. Hundreds of HBr laser shots have been observed from the sealed H2+ Br2gas mixture as the result of the Cl2activation. Under normal conditions, HBr molecules accumulate in the reagent gas mixture after laser oscillation, and the accumulated HBr molecules hinder subsequent laser oscillations. In Cl2activation, Cl2molecules attach themselves to the stainless steel electrodes in the pin-rod TE-type laser tube. The attached Cl2molecules react with the HBr molecules which were produced by the laser reaction. As a result, HBr molecules do not accumulate in the gas mixture. The mixture returns to its original composition after each lasing. As a maximum, about 700 laser shots have been observed.