Effects of the laser field on an inhomogeneity wave in the active medium of an iodine photodissociation laser

The laser field was found to affect the profile of the refractive index n in an inhomogeneity wave in a flashlamp-pumped iodine photodissociation laser. The laser field produced a dip of depth Δn_g in the profile of n in the inhomogeneity wave and this increased grad n in the wave by up to an order of magnitude. An analogy was established between the mechanisms of the effect of the laser field on an inhomogeneity wave and the process of stimulated enthalpy scattering. A correlation was found between Δn_g and the transient gain in stimulated enthalpy scattering in various buffer gases.