High-power XeCl discharge laser with a large active volume

Abstract
An x-ray preionized discharge-pumped XeCl laser with a 10-cm laser-electrode separation has been developed. The laser has a pulse-transmission line in the excitation circuit to realize a high pulse-forming line voltage and a low output impedance. The maximum laser energy obtained is 44 J in an 85-ns pulse (FWHM), corresponding to the peak power of 520 MW. The highest electrical efficiency of 2.9% has been achieved with a laser energy of 16.4 J.