High gain and high peak power in planar waveguide lasers
We report enhanced peak power and gain for pulses in the 10-100 /spl mu/sec range, with specific peak power to 240 kW m/sup -2/ of electrode area at frequencies to 4 kHz. Pulsed small signal gain is increased by a factor of 7 relative to cw/long pulse excitation.
Enhanced peak power and short pulse operation of planar waveguide CO2 lasers
We report a large peak power enhancement and reduction in pulse width for planar waveguide carbon dioxide lasers. Gain modulation through rf discharge power switching produces trains of laser pulses with peak power levels at up to 38 times the cw power level, with a pulse duration as low as 10 μs. Operation at repetition rates in the kHz region preserves the average power (100 W) of the normal cw/long pulse mode of operation. The laser is shown to operate close to the predicted boundaries dictated by thermal loading of the discharge.
Line Arrester Energy Discharge Duties
Surge arresters could practically eliminate lightning flashovers on distribution lines, if they are properly deployed in large enough numbers, and if they could survive the current and energy discharge duties imposed by high-magnitude lightning strokes. The discharge duty depends on complex interactions between the arrester locations, grounding, shielding from nearby objects, and the local lightning environment. But many factors of traditional concern with distribution arrester application, such as the lead length, surge front time, and protective margin, play little or no role in the discharge duty. Probabilistic methods determine the expected arrester failure rate. This should be much lower than the original flashover rate on the line insulation, otherwise the design is not acceptable. A transient program such as EMTP/ATP provides the best tool for calculating the discharge duty, but simplified methods are also available