Theoretical Analysis of a Radio Frequency Excited Slab CO 2 Laser

Theoretical analysis of a radio frequency (RF) excited slab CO 2 laser was carried out, considering not only the bulk plasma region but also the plasma boundary layer. To evaluate laser characteristics, electron density and electron temperature were estimated. The result of computation indicates that electron density and electron temperature would be higher in the boundary layer than in the bulk plasma region. Using such conditions, small-signal gain was computed to be approximately 1.5%/cm in the bulk plasma region and 0.5%/cm in the boundary layer. Thus, the gain in the boundary layer is lower than that in the bulk plasma region, but the boundary layer can sufficiently act as a gain medium as well as the bulk plasma region.