Direct conversion of solar energy into laser radiation

The possibility of converting solar energy into laser radiation is discussed for a mixture of xenon and cesium vapor as the active medium. Estimates show that using a 20-fold solar radiation concentrator it should be possible to achieve cw stimulated emission at 1358.9 and 1469.5 nm with a conversion efficiency of ~3.5%. For an active medium ~25 m long and having a transverse cross section of ~0.4×0.1 m, the laser power will be ~7 kW.