Study of New Chemical Laser Systems.

The authors report experimental and analytical studies aimed at development of visible chemical lasers. It was found that Ba atoms quench BaO with a gas-kinetic rate. This quenching will be a serious loss mechanism in a steady-state flame at conditions of laser threshold. Metal atom quenching appears to give statistical distributions of Ba states. Modeling studies show that a steady-state electronic population inversion is unlikely even without quenching processes because of vibrational relaxation in the ground electronic state. These results taken together suggest the importance of studying premixed, pulsed reactions where both the reactant quenching problem and the vibrational relaxation problem may be avoided. Numerical solutions of the multiple reaction spherical diffusion flame problem pertinent to chemiluminescence studies are presented and discussed.