Compact high-efficiency CO2 slab waveguide lasers with segmented RF excitation

RF-excited slab waveguide CO2 lasers based on either internal or external electrodes were studied. A compact multisegment RF excitation configuration was used for pumping the gain medium. The use of a separate driving circuit to excite each discharge segment led to a very uniform discharge along the slab waveguide. A resultant maximum output power of 82 W with efficiency up to 20.5% was recorded from a 3 mm x 10 mm x 450 mm slab waveguide. The gain coefficient, saturation power and the effect of Xe in the gas mixture were also studied. These lasers can be easily scaled to obtain low-cost high-power operation.