Recent Experiments with the ElectricOIL Laser System

In this paper we report on studies of a continuous wave laser at 1315 nm on the I( 2 P 1/2 ) → I( 2 P 3/2 ) transition of atomic iodine where the O 2 (a 1 Δ) used to pump the iodine was produced by a radio frequency excited electric discharge. The electric discharge was sustained in He/O 2 and Ar/O 2 gas mixtures upstream of a supersonic cavity which is employed to lower the temperature of the continuous gas flow and shift the equilibrium of atomic iodine in favor of the I( 2 P 1/2 ) state. The results of experimental studies for several different flow conditions, discharge arrangements, and mirror sets are presented. The highest laser output power obtained in these experiments was 520 mW in a stable cavity composed of two 99.995% reflective mirrors