Generation of a short pulse by optical free induction decay (OFID) using the rising edge of a TEA CO/sub 2/ laser pulse for excitation

The generation of short CO/sub 2/ laser pulses is achieved in several ways such as the optical free induction decay (OFID) technique. The OFID technique is a relatively simpler mechanism of generating short pulses and easily invites further study of the technique. The present work involves the interaction of the rising edge of a pulsed CO/sub 2/ laser with ammonia and Dymel in an effort to generate an OFID pulse.