Need some suggestions for my first gas laser...

[Cyparagon]

Re: Need some suggestions for my first gas laser..

It would not be an excimer anymore. Excimer is short for excited dimer.

A dimer is a chemical or biological entity consisting of two structurally similar subunits [1] called monomers, which are held together by either intramolecular forces (covalent bonds) or weaker intermolecular forces.

This is not the case of N[sub]2[/sub] or CO[sub]2[/sub].

If I were to refill an argon chassis with krypton, it would not be an argon laser, it would be a krypton laser.

 

[digital_blue]

Re: Need some suggestions for my first gas laser..

It would not be an excimer anymore. Excimer is short for excited dimer.

A dimer is a chemical or biological entity consisting of two structurally similar subunits [1] called monomers, which are held together by either intramolecular forces (covalent bonds) or weaker intermolecular forces.

This is not the case of N[sub]2[/sub] or CO[sub]2[/sub].

If I were to refill an argon chassis with krypton, it would not be an argon laser, it would be a krypton laser.

If I were to get an excimer, I obviously wouldn't be running fluorine/noble gas mixtures(Yet )...

 

[Event_Horizon]

Re: Need some suggestions for my first gas laser..

If I were to refill an argon chassis with krypton, it would not be an argon laser, it would be a krypton laser.

Good point, but it also probably wouldn't work for very long

 

[Cyparagon]

Re: Need some suggestions for my first gas laser..

And why not?

 

[GooeyGus]

Re: Need some suggestions for my first gas laser..

And why not?

I was wondering the same thing...



I think he assumed that you would be filling the tube with krypton yourself in your basement or something similar ;D

 

[Event_Horizon]

Re: Need some suggestions for my first gas laser..

the required gas pressure for proper krypton laser operation is very narrow, much more narrow than an argon laser. Imagine the over and underpressure problems of an argon laser except 15 times worse.  Even the smallest kypton lasers have a gas resivoir the size of a small toaster oven to keep the gas pressure stable. Medium sized krypton lasers or larger have a gas inject system. Filling an argon laser with krypton even in labratory conditions would operate for a hundred hours tops before enough krypton is buried to reduce pressure below lasing levels. I didn't mean to imply you would do a bad job at filling it! ;D

 

[GooeyGus]

Re: Need some suggestions for my first gas laser..

Most medium and large frame ion tubes can use either krypton or argon with absolutely no change to the tube itself. This is because most medium and large frame ion lasers also have a gas inject system. If they didn't, even with Ar fill their lifetime would be substantially shortened. In fact the only difference at all is the resonator optics  

For example, all SP medium and large frame such as the 164, 165, 168, 171 all use the same plasma tube (i'm not implying that the 171 uses the same tube as the other three, but rather that it uses the same tube for Ar and Kr) no matter what the gas fill is. Ar, Kr, or Ar/Kr mix.

 

[Event_Horizon]

Re: Need some suggestions for my first gas laser..

I agree, large frame lasers with gas inject can fairly easily be used with either gas, but I was referring to using a small, air cooled argon laser head without gas inject. Air cooled Krypton lasers typically have a gas reservoir as large as the entire laser tube and heatsink assembly. This is needed to maintain an extremely stable operating pressure because they krypton laser only operates in a very narrow pressure range. The actual tube is the same but a krypton is almost always accompanied by a large gas ballast.

Small argon laser - no gas reservoir
medium argon laser - small gas reservoir
large argon laser - large reservoir or gas inject

small krypton laser - large gas reservoir
medium krypton laser - always gas inject
large krypton laser - large reservoir AND gas inject

Here is a small, air cooled krypton laser we have in the lab at school. I don't know much about it, but I know that's quite the gas ballast compared to an argon laser of the same size!

 

[GooeyGus]

Re: Need some suggestions for my first gas laser..

Looks like an omnichrome 43 series

Could also be a 60x or 532 that has been regassed, as that gas reservoir doesn't exactly look like a factory job

I have a few Ar tubes here that are dead that I would really like to experiment with. I want to see if I can do my own super shitty Ar fill job and get it to lase... I dont have anything to lose!! Except some high grade argon and some electricity from running the vac pump

 

[Cyparagon]

Re: Need some suggestions for my first gas laser..

The end bell is considerably larger in a small frame argon than that of a medium frame argon. There, you will find your gas reserve.

 

[GooeyGus]

Re: Need some suggestions for my first gas laser..

The end bell is considerably larger in a small frame argon than that of a medium frame argon. There, you will find your gas reserve.

Ding ding ding! 100% correct I forgot to even think about that one.

 

[Event_Horizon]

Re: Need some suggestions for my first gas laser..

Yes the cathode volume serves as the gas ballast on small argon.

Good luck refilling those argons GG. Regassing lasers is an interesting (read frustrating) experience. I regassed a hene as best I could in a two hour class and it only worked for about a minute!

 

[Cyparagon]

Re: Need some suggestions for my first gas laser..

It should be easier with an argon. There's one gas, not two. There's also a nice spout that can be opened and closed a few times without breaking.