A self-triggering circuit for a gas-filled laser is disclosed. Electrical pulses which stimulate laser emission are applied to the laser cavity in response to an electrical energy change in the laser charging circuit when ionizing radiation is injected into the laser cavity. A semiconductor device of the type responsive to dv/dt, or of the type responsive to di/dt, is used as the self-triggering switch.
The invention relates to a power supply system for a semiconductor light source of which the power is regulated in the steady state by a regulating loop comprising an electronic switching circuit controlled by a signal characteristic of the power emitted by the laser which closes the regulating loop when the output power has reached, a threshold power, a ramp generator supplying a ramp of current to the laser solely from the instant when the feed voltage is established for reaching the threshold.
A control circuit for a laser system having a first and second power supply connected in parallel. A mode selector is available to the laser operator to change the operational mode of the laser system from continuous to pulse mode or vice versa, and any combination of the modes. In the pulse mode, a series of short-time voltage pulses is superimposed on a low power level laser mode by using the circuit control characteristic of the thyratron tube and shunting the ballast resistors to sharply increase the laser output power for the duration of the individual pulses.
An improved electrical gap switch for use with pulsed gas discharge lasers. The closure of a spark gap, railgap, or other multichannel switch is triggered by the application of a second voltage in combination with the primary voltage that is closed by the switch. The second voltage is of opposite polarity and applied to an electrode opposite from that to which the primary voltage is applied. The second voltage has a more rapid rise time than that of the first, and its application to the switch is momentarily isolated from the load by a saturable inductor. Following triggering of the switch by the combination of voltages, the inductor saturates and provides a low impedance path for the voltage and charge from the primary source to the load.
A method and apparatus for transferring energy to a gas by means of a glow discharge. A transmission line is charged to a voltage of approximately twice that of the steady-state voltage of the glow discharge. A prepulse voltage source, having a higher voltage sufficient to initiate the glow discharge, is first connected to the discharge electrodes. After the discharge is initiated by the prepulse, the transmission line is connected and transfers its energy to the discharge. In a second embodiment, the transmission line is replaced by a capacitor.
Pulse stability is provided to a pulsed gas filled electrical discharge device by an electrical circuit including first and second electrical energy storage means, with the energy stored in the first storage means being substantially greater than the energy stored in the second storage means. A first voltage corresponding to the energy stored on the first storage means is applied to the input of the gas filled device. A second voltage corresponding to the energy stored on the second storage means is periodically switched to combine with the first voltage and be input to the gas filled device. The period for switching is precisely controlled, preferably with a piezoelectric crystal, and is selected to combine the first and second voltages just before the first voltage reaches the natural breakdown voltage of the gas within the gas filled device.
