Detailed optical characterization of a near diffraction limited xenon fluoride laser

A 1 m gain length, electron-beam-pumped xenon fluoride laser (λ=353, 351 nm) utilizing two laser mixtures of lean and rich NF ₃, with Xe and balance Ne, which was operated with a confocal unstable resonator with magnification of 2.24, is discussed. The resultant beam quality was diagnosed with both shearing interferometry to measure near-field phase, and far-field focal-spot evaluation techniques. These measurements resulted in a beam quality of <1.15 times the diffraction limit with no evidence of the wide angle energy loss. The laser was fully characterized with regard to electron-beam deposition uniformity, transient refractive index effects, and optical quality of the resonator and diagnostic components