A laser device having an improved resonator utilizes a single rigid base component for a light reflector coating that defines and forms the end terminals of the resonator cavity, means being provided for translating and reflecting the laser beam between linear light paths that respectively terminate at the mirror surfaces provided by the coating. Various embodiments are shown and in which one or more prisms are used to fold the laser beam between offset and parallel light paths. The end terminal...

An integral mirror type laser system which produces miltiline emissions simultaneously and which is adapted for use in optical data processing systems. In particular, in a first embodiment, a unitary positive column laser comprises two sections, the first section comprising a positive column helium-cadmium laser, the second section comprising a positive column helium-neon laser, the first and second sections being coaxially aligned and having different inner diameters. Simultaneous excitation in...

In a high power laser, such as one employing a relatively high gain lasing medium such as CO.sub.2 or Nd:YAG, the optical resonator for the laser comprises a positive branch unstable resonator. The output beam is coupled from the unstable resonator by means of a partially transmissive mirror of the resonator, whereby a filled-in beam is obtained while facilitating optical alignment of the output coupling means. In a preferred embodiment, the optical resonator comprises a pair of mirrors collinea...

An optical resonator assembly mounted externally on a hermetically sealed gas transport laser comprises a U-shaped tubular bench secured to the laser housing top wall and having an elongated beam with legs extending at right angles to opposite ends, respectively, of the beam adjacent to the front and rear walls of the laser housing. Flat bases depend from the respective bench legs and overlay optical windows in the front and rear housing walls through which the internally generated laser beam pa...

A laser utilizing a unique assembly for mounting a Brewster angle window. The mounting assembly includes an elongated annular member having a transverse slot at the appropriate Brewster angle to the plane perpendicular to the axis of the annular member. A rectangular window is held in place in the slot by the tension of a leaf spring. The mounting assembly may then be inserted in place at either the anode or cathode ends of the laser and permanently held in place without introducing any stresses...

A physically compact gas transport laser operable at high pulse rates (greater than 1 kHz) in a high vacuum (greater than 10.sup.-5 Torr) is achieved by flowing the active gas at high velocity (greater than 50 m/sec) between two discharge electrodes in a hermetically sealed housing containing squirrel cage type blowers, a heat exchanger and the laser electrodes. A pulse forming network and blower motors are mounted externally of the housing as is the optical resonator assembly. A central partiti...

The essence of the invention resides in the creation of a laser beam of a flat planar cross section. This function is accomplished by providing a dual surface concave lens and two parabolic reflection mirrors having predetermined focal points in a laser medium within a generally cylindrical tube. The tube is provided with a mirror at each end thereof and a lens having two concave surfaces is disposed in the approximate center of the tube. A medium is provided within the tube which permits the tr...

The beampath of input radiation in alignment with the longitudinal axis of symmetry of a rectangular parallelepiped laser slab is divided and criss-crossed by a Brewster angle input prism member into two criss-crossing beam path portions fed into the slab input end face for criss-crossing multiple-reflection propagation along the slab to its output end face to be reunited into the single longitudinal-axis-aligned beam by a Brewster angle output prism member adjacent to such output face.

A gas discharge laser in which at least the inner wall of the laser tube is manufactured for the greater part from a gehlenite glass thereby providing a laser having a long life. The gehlenite glass can better withstand the eroding effect of the gas discharge so that the rate at which the optical elements are contaminated is greatly reduced.

In an optically pumped high power laser the optical pump includes a housing containing a pair of flash lamps and an elliptical reflector assembly for reflecting the optical pumping radiation into the laser gain medium, such as a YAG rod. Water coolant is directed through the housing in contacting relation with the YAG rod and flash lamps. An ultraviolet band reject filter, comprising a split cylindrical sleeve, is disposed surrounding the laser gain medium in between the laser gain medium and th...