Generation of radio frequency induced metastable xenon as a gain medium for diode pumped rare gas laser systems

The pursuit of novel, hybrid methods of achieving lasing from the rare gases has recently been a topic of interest in the field of high energy laser systems. This investigation presents the construction and execution of an experimental setup designed to generate metastable xenon (Xe*) to determine its potential to perform as a high power laser gain medium in a similar capacity as the alkali metals in Diode Pumped Alkali Lasers. A capacitively coupled radio frequency discharge was used to light plasma from naturally abundant xenon, thus exciting the 6s[3/2]2 metastable state. The metastable xenon was probed with a tunable diode laser at 882.2 and 904.8 nanometers, and absorption was detected to verify the presence of Xe* atoms. The absorption profiles are reported with in-depth calculations of the isotope shift and hyperfine structure of each absorption line. Preliminary calculations for the properties of the proposed laser system are also presented.