Efficient optical filter for TEA CO(2) laser pumped mid IR molecular lasers.

Area of Science:

• Optics and Photonics
• Laser Physics
• Molecular Spectroscopy

Background:

• Carbon dioxide (CO(2)) lasers are widely used for pumping molecular lasers.
• Optical filters are crucial for isolating specific laser wavelengths.
• Trifluoromethyl iodide (CF(3)I) has potential as a mid-infrared optical filter.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the optical filtering efficiency of trifluoromethyl iodide (CF(3)I).
• To characterize the absorption properties of CF(3)I relevant to mid-infrared lasers.
• To assess CF(3)I as a filter for CO(2) laser-pumped molecular lasers.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a transverse electric-atmospheric (TEA) CO(2) laser as the pump source.
• Employed a 12.08-micrometer (µm) ammonia (NH(3)) laser for probing.
• Measured the absorption characteristics and filtering capacity of CF(3)I.

Main Results:

• CF(3)I demonstrated significant absorption at specific mid-infrared wavelengths.
• The filtering effectiveness of CF(3)I was confirmed for CO(2) laser-pumped systems.
• Absorption spectra correlated with filtering performance.

Conclusions:

• Trifluoromethyl iodide (CF(3)I) is a viable and efficient optical filter for mid-infrared molecular lasers.
• Its spectral properties make it suitable for applications involving CO(2) laser pumping.
• Further investigation into CF(3)I as a tunable filter is warranted.