A comprehensive, up-to-date review of the physics and applications of a major class of laser, the most important example of which is the copper vapour laser. A collection of 50 papers written by the world's leaders in the field. Papers cover: the early history of pulsed metal vapour lasters; the plasma kinetics and excitation mechanisms of self terminating and recombination metal vapour lasers; beam quality issues for applications; frequency harmonic generation for mid-UV applications; high-precision processing of metals, ceramics, glasses and plastics using metal vapour lasers; applications in medicine, including oncology and dermatology; applications in science such as spectroscopy and mass spectrometry. A practical source of information on the physics, engineering and applications of metal vapour lasers.
Audience: scientists, teachers and graduate researchers working in the fields of gas lasers, laser optics, gas discharges, optoelectronics and laser applications in industry, science and medicine.

Inhalt

1. Historical Viewpoints.- Pulsed metal vapor lasers: past and future.- Copper lasers in the beginning.- 2. Physics of Pulsed Metal Vapour Lasers.- Copper laser kinetics a comparative study.- Kinetics of metal vapour and metal halide lasers.- Kinetics of metal ion recombination lasers.- Experimental studies of CVL kinetics.- Physics of transverse-discharge copper vapour lasers.- Investigation of bismuth vapour lasers.- 3. Laser Characteristics and Operation.- Plasma parameters of metal vapour lasers.- High-power copper vapour lasers and applications.- Copper bromide lasers.- Metal HyBrID lasers.- Output limiting mechanisms and the prospects for metal vapour lasers with average output power above 1 kW/m.- Strontium and calcium ion recombination lasers and their applications.- The effects of impurities on metal vapour laser performance.- Influence of hydrogen on the kinetics of copper bromide lasers.- MVL parameter management through electron plasma component.- Novel circuits for the excitation of metal vapour lasers.- Novel low-temperature pulsed metal-vapour lasers the high-voltage segmented hollow-cathode metal ion laser.- Measurement of hot spots in copper vapour lasers.- 4. Modelling Metal Vapour Lasers.- Computer modelling of longitudinally excited elemental copper vapour lasers.- Impedance matching and electric field penetration in metal vapour lasers.- Physical consequences of the rapid drop of the electron temperature in copper vapour laser (CVL).- 5. Optical Resonators and Beam Quality.- Beam quality issues in CVL applications.- Beam quality issues in copper vapour lasers.- Advances in unstable resonator technology for pulsed metal vapor lasers.- Beam quality issues for the second harmonic generation of copper vapour radiation.- Spectral control incopper bromide lasers and its application in high speed holography.- 6. Frequency Extension.- Frequency extension of metal vapour lasers.- Transformation of copper and copper bromide laser radiation in non-linear processes.- High power dye laser pumping by copper vapour lasers.- Amplification of the temporally stretched yellow beam of the copper vapour laser.- 7. Applications in Industry.- Precision machining with copper vapour lasers.- Industrial applications of high-power copper vapor lasers.- Exploring high power materials processing applications with copper vapour lasers.- Copper laser machining of ceramics.- Drilling and cutting transparent substrates with copper vapour lasers.- UV micromachining using copper vapour lasers, D.W. Coutts.- Underwater direct metal processing by high-power copper vapour laser.- Applications of CVLs in the electronics industry.- Laser induced chemical etching of silicon with SF6 using a copper bromide vapour laser.- 8. Applications in Medicine.- Treatment of port-wine stains with the 578 nm light from a copper vapour laser and an automated scanning device.- Metal vapour laser systems in biology and medicine.- Copper vapour lasers in oncology.- 9. Applications in Science & Technology.- Applications of copper vapour lasers in spectroscopy.- The use of copper vapor lasers in guide-star applications.- Interaction of CVL radiation with solids: application to mass spectrometry.- Applications of pulsed metal vapour lasers in atmospheric optics.- Optical systems with metal vapour brightness amplifiers.- 10. Collated Characteristics of Some Commercial Pulsed Metal Vapour Lasers.- 11. Contact List of Participants.