Theory of a Zeeman Laser. I

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Abstract
A theory of a laser subject to a uniform dc magnetic field at any angle to the maser axis is given in extension of a non-Zeeman treatment by Lamb. The electromagnetic field is treated classically for a general state of polarization in a cavity with any desired degree of cavity anisotropy. The active medium consists of thermally moving atoms of varying isotopic abundance which have two electronic states with arbitrary angular momenta and may have hyperfine structure. The self-consistency requirement that a quasistationary field should be sustained by the induced polarization leads to equations which determine the amplitudes and frequencies of multimode oscillation as functions of the laser parameters. A set of computer programs has been written which covers the theory very generally, yielding among other things graphs of intensities and beat frequencies versus time, cavity detuning, or magnetic field strength.