Can anyone tell me what this is or how to make it work

Cyparagon · Feb 8, 2012

For the second tube, what color do you see when looking down the bore? Placing a plasma ball next to it (or otherwise exciting the gas) will also give a hint. I almost want to say HeNe.

Sputnik77 · Feb 8, 2012

Polonium210 said:
The proper googles would protect for the laser wavelength. Co2 is around 10600nm=10.6um.

Your asking if the tube is refillable? It would take skill and some expensive equipment that you probably don't have access to. If you found a place that refills Co2 lasers it would cost you as much as a new tube.

You say your an EE student? You can power it from a ZVS driver. I power my tube from a homemade ZVS flyback driver. This works perfect as a large color TV flybacks are rectified output.

Yes, polycarbonate safety glasses are nearly completely absorptive at 10.6um. Most, if not all goggle specifically for CO2 are just overpriced safety glasses.

Actually, polycarbonate, glass and acrylic lenses are all almost completely opaque to 10.6um.

The cornea of the eye is actually opaque to this wavelength. The chances of retina damage are small as the 10.6um radiation would have to burn through the cornea first. I dont think anyone is going to hold their eye in front of a CO2 beam long enough for that to happen.

Most of the protection dealing with CO2 is radiated heat related. Meaning, the incandescence of materials put off during heating to such temperatures of various object, can do damage to the eye. That means the bright glowing white spot you will see on the rock your going to try to melt, can burn your retina , just like looking at the sun.

However, glasses MUST be worn!!

Cyparagon said:
For the second tube, what color do you see when looking down the bore? Placing a plasma ball next to it (or otherwise exciting the gas) will also give a hint. I almost want to say HeNe.

Yea, the ceramic looking, what appears to be a dielectric tube down the center of the bore is throwing me off a bit.

If its HeNe, its a bad a$$ HeNe, and I want one!! I want it anyway, it look cool!!

98Mystique2 · Feb 8, 2012

Sputnik77 said:
Yes, polycarbonate safety glasses are nearly completely absorptive at 10.6um. Most, if not all goggle specifically for CO2 are just overpriced safety glasses.

Actually, polycarbonate, glass and acrylic lenses are all almost completely opaque to 10.6um.

The cornea of the eye is actually opaque to this wavelength. The chances of retina damage are small as the 10.6um radiation would have to burn through the cornea first. I dont think anyone is going to hold their eye in front of a CO2 beam long enough for that to happen.

Most of the protection dealing with CO2 is radiated heat related. Meaning, the incandescence of materials put off during heating to such temperatures of various object, can do damage to the eye. That means the bright glowing white spot you will see on the rock your going to try to melt, can burn your retina , just like looking at the sun.

However, glasses MUST be worn!!

Yea, the ceramic looking, what appears to be a dielectric tube down the center of the bore is throwing me off a bit.

If its HeNe, its a bad a$$ HeNe, and I want one!! I want it anyway, it look cool!!

aren't the brewster s.p. ends made of glass? so if glass absorbs.....
but it looks clear down the center minus that yeah ceramic looking thing.
one came out of an engraver the other a etcher thing i believe from what i was told. not sure which is which

Sputnik77 · Feb 8, 2012

98Mystique2 said:
aren't the brewster s.p. ends made of glass? so if glass absorbs.....
but it looks clear down the center minus that yeah ceramic looking thing.
one came out of an engraver the other a etcher thing i believe from what i was told. not sure which is which

I was referring to typical glass "glasses" lenses. You can look it up on Sams laser FAQ if you would like. I dont think anyone would argue with Sam!!

Ok, then its likely a CO2 as well then. The tube down the center may be something to help cool, or quench the plasma column.

Cyparagon · Feb 8, 2012

Sputnik77 said:
Yea, the ceramic looking, what appears to be a dielectric tube down the center of the bore is throwing me off a bit.

Don't look AT the bore, look DOWN the bore. Look into the output aperture (where the laser beam would come out.) What do you see?

LSRFAQ · Feb 13, 2012

Would you mind shooting a end on pic of the green trumpets.

If it is what I think it, is, I'm going to have a heart attack.

No one has made them in 30 years.

The one with the green trumpets is special.
Very rare.

The dual fill valve solenoids are a clue. No hene and few Co2 need fill valves, so that is most likely pulsed xenon or argon.

It is a pulsed laser, it needs driven from a big capacitor, its also missing the resonator and mirrors, so it will not lase. It will NOT run correctly off a neon transformer, which could MELT it.

I can tell from the end windows, which is why I need to see a end on shot.

Dont power up the fill valve coils either..

The other is a standard waveguide Co2 tube.

Steve

Bluefan · Feb 13, 2012

Pulsed xenon would be very rare indeed, and I've only once seen a pulsed argon, a ~2 meter long Spectra Physics one at the university.

Sputnik77 · Feb 13, 2012

Bluefan said:
Pulsed xenon would be very rare indeed, and I've only once seen a pulsed argon, a ~2 meter long Spectra Physics one at the university.

That may actually be correct!!!! The trigger coils are apparent as well!!

LSRFAQ · Feb 13, 2012

Sputnik77 said:
That may actually be correct!!!! The trigger coils are apparent as well!!

With respect,

Those are NOT trigger coils, that is a refill system.

Pulsed lasers run at less then 20 microns pressure and burn gas by forcing it into the glass and electrodes.

Those are two solenoid valves with a small chamber in between them.

Fill sequence:
Open the first valve, it fills the chamber.
Close the first valve
Open the second valve, it dumps the chamber into the tube.
Immediatly close the second valve.

Wait 10-20 minutes for the gas to diffuse, check the tube voltage/power,
repeat as needed.
Do NOT overfill.

Very common on scientific and medical ion lasers that I work on.

We "Buzz" or "Bleep" the valves very quickly to limit flow.

Mainly because if two valves ever open at the same time, the tube is hosed unless you have it repumped. The fill resivoirs are usually at 760 Torr, and CW ion tubes are at .1 to .2 torr for larger tubes. Pulsed tubes are at a fraction of that.
So overfilling is very bad.

Steve

Sputnik77 · Feb 13, 2012

LSRFAQ said:
With respect,

Those are NOT trigger coils, that is a refill system.

Steve

With respect, the the item in red in the pic below is NOT a fill valve. It may not be a trigger, but its NOT a fill valve!!!

It looks like a start-up trigger due to its placement and "design", but I could be wrong.

LSRFAQ · Feb 14, 2012

Sputnik77 said:
With respect, the the item in red in the pic below is NOT a fill valve. It may not be a trigger, but its NOT a fill valve!!!

It looks like a start-up trigger due to its placement and "design", but I could be wrong.

END QUOTE

That is a Klixon style overtemp sensor. Uses a bimetal thermal switch.

Steve

Sputnik77 · Feb 14, 2012

LSRFAQ said:
Sputnik77 said:

With respect, the the item in red in the pic below is NOT a fill valve. It may not be a trigger, but its NOT a fill valve!!!

It looks like a start-up trigger due to its placement and "design", but I could be wrong.

END QUOTE

That is a Klixon style overtemp sensor. Uses a bimetal thermal switch.

Steve

Click to expand...

Ahh, makes sense!!

Can anyone tell me what this is or how to make it work

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