Rami Arieli: "The Laser Adventure"

Rami Arieli: "The Laser Adventure" Chapter 6, Metal Vapor Lasers, page 6

Applications of Copper Vapor Lasers:

1. Pump Sources for Dye lasers, for short pulses.

2. Illuminating objects in high speed photography.

Copper Vapor laser output is in a form of visible laser radiation in very short pulses, at a very high pulse frequency. So, this radiation can be used as an illuminating source for high speed flash photography. An example is photographs of rifle bullets at speeds of 300-15,000 [m/s].

3. In Forensics:

Identifing fingerprints, and traces of special elements in the scene of a crime. The laser radiation is used to illuminate the sample, and the fluorescence at higher wavelengths is examined. Because of the laser high peak power, residual traces can be identified which can not be identified using conventional narrow spectral light.

4. Photo-Dynamic-Therapy (PDT)

The selective destruction of cancer cells by laser radiation at specific wavelength, after a special drug is injected into the patient (see chapter 9.2.2).

5. Enrichment of Uranium (U²³⁵)

By selective photo-ionization of U²³⁵ in a steam of natural Uranium.

The amount of U²³⁵ in natural Uranium ore is very small, and it is very difficult to isolate it.
Using copper Vapor lasers, it is possible to selectively ionize only U²³⁵, and collect the ionized material on electrically charged plates.
The main research in Uranium distillation is done in Lawrence Livermore Laboratories in the US. They use Copper Vapor lasers to pump tuneable Dye lasers at very high power.
t is possible to tune the dye laser for ionization of Plutonium (Pu²³⁹) which is used for nuclear weapons.
The maximum published average power out of these Copper Vapor lasers is 6,000 [W], compared to the 100 [W] maximum out of commercially available lasers.