Spatial distributions of translational and vibrational temperatures of molecules in a waveguide CO2 laser plasma

Methods developed for diagnostics of the active media of waveguide carbon dioxide lasers at elevated pressures and input energies in a capillary gas discharge were used to study the mechanism of gas heating and pumping of vibrational levels in a CO₂–N₂–He (1:1:8) mixture. As a result of spectroscopic experiments with an actual spatial resolution of ~0.2 mm, radial distributions of the translational and vibrational temperatures of the molecules were reconstructed as a function of changes in the discharge conditions. The results could be used to establish the mechanism of gas heating in a capillary discharge of a waveguide CO₂ laser.