Ar pressure was such a key parameter in capillary discharge soft X-ray laser research that it played important role in generating mechanism and output and so on of laser. Through systemic investigation of the impact of Ar pressure on laser output in this article, it was found that the maximum output of laser signal had really been increased from ~17 V to ~18.4 V when Ar pressure went up from 38 Pa to 65 Pa. But the prerequisite was to increase the pre-current pulse and to prolong the delay time

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... between pre-and main-current pulse properly which could make the main-current pulse utilize the better state of pre-ionized plasma adequately and obtain the laser medium with larger gain coefficient. These research works had important significance in optimizing the discharge parameter further and improving the output power of laser and so on. 收稿日期:2013 年 1 月 16 日;修回日期:2013 年 1 月 28 日;录用日期:2013 年 2 月 4 日 摘 要: Ar 气气压是毛细管放电软 X 光激光研究中的关键参量, 其对激光的产生机理和输出等发挥重要的作用。 本文通过系统地研究 Ar 气气压对激光输出的影响,发现当 Ar 气气压从 38 Pa 升高到 65 Pa 时,激光信号的最大 输出值确实从~17 V 提高到~18.4 V。但前提条件是适当地增大预脉冲电流,并适当地延长预-主脉冲延时,使 主脉冲电流能够更充分地利用良好的预电离等离子体状态,获得增益系数较大的激光介质。这些研究工作对进 一步优化放电参量,提高激光的输出功率等具有重要的意义。 关键词:激光技术;毛细管放电;软 X 光激光;激光输出;Ar 气气压 1. 引言 激光的出现是人类发明史上的大事,极大地促进 了人类社会的发展和文明的进步。正如当年人们从 Maser 向 Laser 进军一样, 获得更短波长的 X 光激光 [1] 始终是人类梦寐以求的向往。X 光激光具有波长短、 单光子能量大、光源亮度高、相干性好等优点,在 X 光激光相干检测、全息、光刻、工业加工、医疗等方 面具有重要的应用前景。毛细管放电类氖氩 46.9 nm 软 X 光激光来源于 Ar 8+ 。当满足一定的放电条件时, Ar 8+ 的丰度很高,此时轴向均匀、细长的等离子体柱 * 基金项目:国家自然科学基金重点项目(60838005)和哈尔滨工业大 学创新团队资助。