Electron‐beam‐pumped KrF laser with a neon‐argon diluent

Enhanced laser action of KrF* is observed for a diluent mixture of Ar and Ne. If the Ar diluent is replaced by neon, the maximum output is practically unchanged. For an optimized mixture of Ne and Ar the output is increased by more than 50%. The system, with an active length of 50 cm and a diameter of 4 cm, is transversely excited by an e‐beam with a pulse duration of 30 nsec, current density of 100 A/cm2, and energy of 750 kV. The maximum output energy is 2.1 J.