Experimental investigation of maximum permissible water-vapor content in CO2–H2O–N2 laser

The active medium of a gasdynamic CO₂–H₂O–N₂ laser was investigated at high initial temperatures (up to 3200°K) for a large water-vapor content (up to 50%). The experiments were performed with a shock tube, and the mixture escaped through a slit. The method of amplification of a low-power CO₂ laser beam was used. The gain decreased with increasing H₂O concentration in the mixture, but still remained appreciable (3·10⁴ cm^–1). The corresponding component ratio was CO₂:H₂O:N₂ = 1:5:4. The experimental results were compared with the calculated data.