Performance characteristics of a high power Q-switched CO2 laser based on a fast gas flow system have been investigated. A combination of a fast rotating chopper and an intracavity telescope as a Q-switching device has been applied to a fast axial flow, dc- discharged 1.5 kW continuous wave CO2 laser. The laser delivered 480 W average output power at 12 kHz pulse repetition rate on a free-running basis. Peak power of each Q-switched pulse is approximately 100 kW, and the pulse duration is 250 nsec. An analytical model describing the unique characteristics of the CO2 laser medium and of the rotating chopper Q-switching technique has been developed and applied to the experimental results. Good agreement was obtained between the theory and experiment for various pulse parameters such as peak power, pulse duration, and pulse buildup time. A method to improve the pulse characteristics using a fast axial gas flow system is proposed.
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