Argon Ion Lasers

DAVANGERE UNIVERSITY
Shivagangotri, Davangere
DEPARTMENT OF STUDIES IN
PHYSICS
Seminar on
Topic : Construction and working of Argon
ion Laser.
Seminar Supervisor : Presented By :
Yashaswini. R
Dr.Shashikala Yalagi 1st MSc Physics
Roll no : 45.
Assistant Professor
CONTENTS :-
1. Introduction
2. Construction od Argon Ion Laser
3. Working of Argon Ion Laser
4. Application of Argon Ion Laser
5. Advantages of Argon Ion Laser
6. Disadvantages of Argon Ion Laser
7. Conclusion
8. REFERENCE
INTRODUCTION TO ARGON ION LASER :
Argon laser is a type of gas laser

that uses ionized argon gas to
produce a powerful beam of
coherent light.
It is widely used in various

applications such as medical
procedures, scientific research,
and industrial process.
The construction and working of

the Argon laser involve several
key components and principles.
Structure of Typical Uniphase of Argon
Ion Laser Tube
CONSTRUCTION OF ARGON ION LASER:
An ion laser is a gas laser in which ionized gas is used as the active or
lasing medium. The electrical pumping method is used to achieve the
population inversion in an ion laser. The pumping process is a two-step
process in ion Laser. In the first step, the electron in the discharge tube
makes a collision with neutral atoms of rare gases and thus produces an
ion.
In the second step, these ions are excited to a higher energy level. Therefore,
the population of higher energy level increase due to the successive collision
of the irons with the electrons in the discharge tube. These lasers require high
pumping power of the order of several kilowatts.
The Argon ion Laser consists of a long and narrow discharge tube made of
beryllium oxide filled with organ gas having two Windows at its ends inclined
at Brewster’s angle.
The narrow discharge tube act as an optical resonator or cavity as two Mirrors
are placed at each end of the tube facing perpendicular to the length of the
tube. One of the mirrors is partially reflecting mirror and the other is 100%
reflecting mirror.
When a high voltage is applied between the cathode and anode, a high current
flows. Due to the high current density, the Argon ions migrate continuously
toward the cathode and electrons toward the anode.
Ions having low mobility tend to accumulate at the cathode, get neutralized,
and diffuse slowly back into the discharge tube.
The discharge tube consists of a return tube to equalize the distribution of argon
iron. The electric field in the discharge accelerates the iron which produces a
high temperature of approximately 3,000 degrees Kelvin. Therefore the water
cooling system is required.
The hot ions collide with the tube and may damage it. The wall damage may be
reduced by using material such as graphite or beryllia (Beo) having higher
thermal conductivity. To increase the pump rate and output power, a static
magnetic field is applied in the discharge region parallel to the axis.
This field confines the discharge to the center of the tube and increases the
number of electrons near the axis. The Argon ion Laser oscillates
simultaneously on two transitions having wavelength 4881Å (blue) and
5145 Å(green).
Oscillation on a single line can be selected by placing a prism inside the cavity.
With this laser, High output powers up to 100W can be obtained from a 1 cm
diameter tube.
WORKING OF ARGON ION LASER :
The Argon ion Laser is a four-
level laser. The various energy
level of argon ion is shown in the
figure. When electric discharge
passes through the tube, the Argon
atoms are pumped to energy level
E3 by two-step of collision with
electrons.
In the first step, neutral argon

atoms are ionized and raised to
energy level E1 (known as the
ground state of argon ions). In the
second step, the ion in the ground
state is excited to energy level E3.
The excited organ iron in energy labels E3 falls back to energy level E2 either the
spontaneous emission or by stimulated emission process. The ions in energy level
E2 decay spontaneously to the ground state of argon-ion emitting a photon of
wavelength 720Å ( ultraviolet Photon).
In the Argon ion laser, the number of photons of different wavelengths is emitted.
For example,, Argon laser generates up to 18 discrete lines (wavelength) ranging
from ultraviolet (720 Å) to visible green (5145Å) the majority of the power
developed at 4881Å and 5145Å wavelengths.
A Prism is placed in front of one of the mirrors of the cavity to select a particular
wavelength for repeated oscillation in the cavity to stimulated identical photons. As
such this laser operates at a single wavelength. In the absence of the prism, the
organ and Laser are allowed to board band operation ( i.e. Photon of many
wavelengths).
APPLICATIONS OF ARGON ION LASER :
1 . MEDICAL PROCEDURES : Used in some surgical procedures,
dermatology and ophthalmology for tissue ablation and photocoagulation.
2 . MATERIAL PROCESSING : Employed for cutting, welding and marking

materials, especially in the electronic industries.
3 . SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH : Widely used in laboratories for spectroscopy,

fluorescence studies and other experimental applications.
4 . HOLOGRAPHY : Utilized in the creation of holograms due to their ability

to produce coherent light.
5 . PRINTING INDUSTRY : Used for high-resolution printing and scanning

processes.
6 . CONFOCAL MICROSCOPY : Applied in biological research for high-

resolution imaging.
7 . ENTERTAINMENT AND LASER LIGHT SHOWS : Argon ion lasers
produces vibrant colours and are used in laser light shows and entertainment
industry displays.
8 . FLOW CYTOMETRY : In the field of biology, these lasers are used for cell
analysis and sorting.
9 . GAS CHROMATOGRAPHY-MASS SPECTROMETER (GC-MS) :

Applied in analytical chemistry for separation and identification of compounds.
10 . LASER PUMPING : Used as pump sources for other lasers, such as dye
lasers and solid state lasers.
ADVANTAGES OF ARGON ION LASERS :
• The width of the spectrum of Argon ion laser is large i.e. it emits multiple
wavelengths.
• The output of the Argon laser is high as compared to the output of the He-
Ne laser.
• The argon laser is a high-gain system.
• The divergence of the Argon laser is very small.
DISADVANTAGES OF ARGON ION LASERS :

• The cost of an Argon laser is more than that of a He-Ne laser.
• The efficiency of the argon laser is very small.
• A large amount of power supply is needed to operate an Argon laser.

CONCLUSION :
The construction and working of an Argon laser involve a gas tube,

electrodes, mirrors, and a cooling system.
The principle of population inversion and stimulated emission drives the

emission of coherent light.
Argon lasers find diverse applications in medicine, scientific research, and

industrial processes.
REFERENCE :
Reference 1: Smith, J. R. (2007). Argon Ion Lasers.

In Encyclopedia of Laser Physics and Technology.
Reference 2: Srinivasan, R. (2017). Lasers: Principles,

Types and Applications. CRC Press.
Reference 3: Koechner, W. (2006). Solid-State Laser

Engineering. Springer
THANK
YOU

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DAVANGERE UNIVERSITY

Argon laser is a type of gas laser

It is widely used in various

The construction and working of

In the first step, neutral argon

2 . MATERIAL PROCESSING : Employed for cutting, welding and marking

3 . SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH : Widely used in laboratories for spectroscopy,

4 . HOLOGRAPHY : Utilized in the creation of holograms due to their ability

5 . PRINTING INDUSTRY : Used for high-resolution printing and scanning

6 . CONFOCAL MICROSCOPY : Applied in biological research for high-

9 . GAS CHROMATOGRAPHY-MASS SPECTROMETER (GC-MS) :

• The argon laser is a high-gain system.

• The divergence of the Argon laser is very small.

DISADVANTAGES OF ARGON ION LASERS :

• The efficiency of the argon laser is very small.

• A large amount of power supply is needed to operate an Argon laser.

The construction and working of an Argon laser involve a gas tube,

The principle of population inversion and stimulated emission drives the

Argon lasers find diverse applications in medicine, scientific research, and

Reference 1: Smith, J. R. (2007). Argon Ion Lasers.

Reference 2: Srinivasan, R. (2017). Lasers: Principles,

Reference 3: Koechner, W. (2006). Solid-State Laser

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