| 摘要 |
PURPOSE:To achieve a large discharge input, by providing a plurality of groove parts in the surface of a cathode at the uppermost side of a gas flow, thereby establishing stable glow discharge even though gas pressure is high. CONSTITUTION:An electrode part is constituted of a plurality of rod shaped or pipe shaped cathodes 2a-2d, which are laterally arranged with respect to a gas flow 1, and a plurality of similar anodes 3a-3d, which are crossed with the cathode. In the cathode 2a at the uppermost side of the gas flow, a plurality of grooves 10 are provided around the circumference of the cathode and corner parts are formed. When a voltage is applied across the electrodes 2 and 3, glow discharge 11 is generated at the groove part 10 where the electric field intensity is large. When the discharge current is increased, the glow ischarge is sequentially generated on the other cathodes 2b-2d on the downstream side from the electrode 2a. Therefore, the stable glow discharge is generated even though gas pressure is high. A total reflecting mirror 7 and an output mirror 8 form a resonator so that the glow discharge is contained between both mirrors. Thus a laser output 9 is obtained. |
