| 摘要 |
PURPOSE:To improve the efficiency of a laser output by a method wherein the downstream side of a discharge part in a gas-flow passage is so formed as to be narrower than the upstream side of the discharge part and laser gas excited by the discharge is made to flow along the narrowed passage. CONSTITUTION:In order to excite laser gas by discharge, a discharge part 23 having an anode 19 and a cathode 21 is provided in an upper gas-flow passage 7. If the downstream side of the discharge part 23 in the upper gas-flow passage 7 is so formed as to be narrower than the upstream side of the discharge part 23, the laser gas is made to flow while it is narrowed along a commutation plate 27. Therefore, the portion of the laser gas which does not flow on the light paths of laser beams even if it is excited by the discharge is relatively suppressed, so that the efficiency of a laser oscillation can be relatively improved. With this constitution, when the flow-regulating plate 27 is provided to narrow the downstream side of the discharge part 23, a higher laser output can be obtained, for instance, the output increase of 150W is obtained when the discharge current is 10A, compared with the laser output obtained when the downstream side of the discharge part 23 is not narrowed. |
