Thyristor-driven pulsers for multikilowatt average power lasers

The development of industrial excimer and CO₂ TEA pulse lasers with average optical powers in the kilowatt range, requires pulsing circuits delivering average power levels of tens of kilowatt. Excitation pulses with voltage rise times in the order of 100 ns and peak voltages of more than 40 kV are required for efficient operation of the laser. To meet these requirements, primary switching must be carried out at tens of kA, at voltage levels in excess of 40 kV, and at repetition rates of several kHz. Endeavours to overcome the limitations of thyratrons have led to the development of an all solid-state driven pulser. This pulser makes use of a modular, thyristor switched, pulse power supply unit for primary pulse conversion. Pulses of 40 μs duration are supplied to a four-stage series magnetic pulse compressor to transform the pulses down to 150 ns for efficient laser excitation