Ultraviolet afterglow lasing in an Ar–N2–He mixture

We propose and experimentally demonstrate the possibility of efficient lasing at the С³Π_u – B³Π_g transition of the N₂ molecule in the afterglow of a high-pressure Ar–N₂–He mixture excited by an electron beam with an average electron energy ε _e ≈ 300 keV, an average current density j ≈ 30 A/см 30 A/cm², and a FWHM duration τ ≈ 100 ns. With a laser pulse duration of ∼110 ns, the laser energy is ∼65 mJ.