gas laser enquiry

[mixedgas]

thanks guys, your input is appreciated... I have now some work to do on a big gas laser, if it is intact...

original PSU was 3 phase 400V @ 60 amperes to get it to full power, and I doubt to be able to get it lase at 220VAC single phase @ 38A max...

I keep thinking about getting it to work before selling it though, and I really want to see it lase even if it is at one watt... a whitelight tube is something I want to make work one day, and I have now that opportunity, having one for free

Pulse it. Surplus electrolytic caps are cheap. Hum, driving the magnet though....... Ok magnet on the 220 line, big bank of caps,

Light the cathode, and then pulse the anode though a series injection ignitor.

coherent does that for their I70 sized medical tube........... 1-2 second pulses.

Steve

[Laserman532]

ya gots to deal with the magnet. probably 15 or more amps you could use a bridge rectifier with a bunch of amp capabilities

I would try to find a surplus power supply somewhere then you are golden...even tho it is still a crappy laser i cant believe I just said that

[shrad]

hehe I have found the powwer supply, a SP model 270 exciter, which is still in pretty condition

all I hope now is they don't remember they had it mated to that tube in the past, and that they will let me take it as junk electronics

Steve, could you perhaps tell me about a basic chronogram for that pulsed operation? that would make its way easier to my mind, and it would help designing a prototype basic power supply in the future

also, I was thinking about that, are ion lasers excitable via RF power? if so, modification of a meduim power CO² power supply would maybe do a part of the job? what worries me are coatings and eventual metallic seals which could wear off because of that

if I see it correctly, the magnet would do 10~15 amps at a good 200V, which would leave a good 20 amperes for the rest of the PSU

heating the filament wouldn't be a problem as it would draw less than 5 amperes from a rewound microwave oven transformer, and I'd have a good 15~20 amperes for discharge purpose, optimal case... I couldn't find the idle current so no idea what I need

any idea about how to calculate discharge voltage and current versus length of tube?

I'll keep gathering information about that laser and its PSU (if I may find schematics it would be phenomenal) and see if I can do something... and maybe then change the optics as Steve suggested to get a stable cavity (or implement some kind of feedback to make this beamlock thing work...)