Theory of a waveguide laser

The role of diffusion of the components of the gas mixture is the generation mechanism of a waveguide CO₂ laser is analyzed. A method is proposed for reducing the multicomponent problem of linear diffusion with dissipation to a one-component problem. The superposition of relaxation modes for a cylindrical waveguide is considered. The diffusion contribution to the loss of electromagnetic energy is estimated for the case of the field hybrid mode EH₁₁ of a dielectric waveguide. The rapid increase in the loss for a SiO₂ waveguide tube and the observation of the filtration properties of the laser in conditions when the diffusion is taken into account are noted.Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Fizika, No. 7, pp. 17–21, July, 1975.