A hollow-cathode copper halide laser

We have successfully operated a CuCl laser in a metal tube in a hollow-cathode configuration. An average output of 400 mW was obtained with 0.06 percent "wall plug" efficiency. Excitation was by pulse burst with a repetition rate of 1-15 kHz within the burst. Despite the use of an unsealed vacuum system and cold windows the laser was operated for more than 300 h on a single charge of CuCl. The hollow-cathode configuration appears to offer significant improvement in mechanical strength and lasant conservation over Pyrex- or quartz-walled longitudinally pumped copper halide lasers.