Relative performance of a variety of NF3+ hydrogen-donor transverse-discharge HF chemical-laser systems

The performance of 18 NF3+ hydrogen-donor reactant systems has been determined in a pin-discharge HF chemical laser. Laser energy, laser pulse shape, and the time delay between initiation and lasing were measured in experiments with all 18 reactant systems; lasing lines were measured in 9 systems. It was found that, in general, saturated aliphatic hydrocarbons produced the most laser energy, other hydrocarbons produced less laser energy, and inorganic hydrides produced the least laser energy. Rates of hydrogen abstraction by fluorine atoms have been determined from calculations based on pulse-shape data for the hydrogen compounds used in this study. Ten of these rates have not previously been reported.