Advanced iodine laser concepts

The essential features of an advanced iodine laser are outlined. These are governed primarily by the proper choice of the stored inversion density of an amplifier and also by the means to enhance the energy extraction efficiency to values in excess of 50 percent. With these measures an amplifier chain with output energies in the kJ range and overall system efficiencies of almost 0.2 percent can be designed. This value is twice as high as that now achieved. As the laser-fusion experiments require a greater pulse duration variability than hitherto obtained, an oscillator pumped by an excimer laser is developed, allowing chain output pulse durations in the range from some 100 ps to several ns. The frequency conversion of iodine laser light by nonlinear interaction in crystals is also investigated.