CW 20-kW SAGE CO/sub 2/ laser for industrial use

A CW CO/sub 2/ laser with power output of more than 20 kW is described. The laser consists of a discharge excitation system named SAGE (Silent-discharge Assisted Glow discharge Excitation) and a ZnSe or KCl transmissive window for extracting high-quality beams with axisymmetric intensity profile from a confocal positive-branch unstable resonator. SAGE is effective in forming a uniformly distributed and stable discharge in a large-volume, high-pressure gas excitation medium. Together with appropriate high-pressure gas conditions and a properly selected zeolite to adsorb water vapor in the laser chamber, the transmissive windows enable gas-sealed operations. The structure of the 20-kW SAGE laser and its performance characteristics are described. The maximum CW power of 26.5 kW with an efficiency of 16.5% is attained with the ZnSe window, and a 20.3-kW power output is extracted through the KCl window. Long-term gas-sealed operation at a CW power level of 20 kW has been demonstrated for a period of 65 h.< >