Haruo UCHIYAMA and Masanori JYUMONJI

Hachinohe Institute of Technology, 88-1, Ohbiraki, Myou, Hachinohe, Aomori, 031 Japan

(Received February 13, 1995; Accepted April 30, 1996)

A highly energetic flashlamp-pumped dye laser of 110 J output energy and overall efficiency of 1.1% is developed. For such a powerful laser particular considerations must be taken in order to reduce thermal distortion in the dye solution caused by high-energy pumping. The laser system is therefore composed of a laser head with a four-fold elliptical cylindrical reflector, extended Marx-bank driver circuit, a large aperture dye cell of 44 mm inner diameter and an unstable resonator.

Key words : dye laser, tunable laser, flashlamp, laser spectroscopy, unstable resonator