JPH07162067A - Laser device and laser discharge tube - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Object] To obtain a small-sized, inexpensive, highly reliable, simple laser device having a high laser oscillation efficiency and a high power utilization efficiency, and a laser discharge tube having a high laser oscillation efficiency. The discharge current i ₁ discharged from the main capacitor 4 by turning on the main switch 8 is once charged in the peaking capacitor 6 and supplied to the laser discharge tube 7 as a current i ₂ to cause laser oscillation. At this time, the thyratron 2 for suppressing the subsequent current generated by the resonance circuit formed by the peaking capacitor 6 and the laser discharge tube 7.
0 is conducted and suppressed. Further, a heating source is provided in the vicinity of the discharge electrode to flatten the temperature distribution in the axial direction in the discharge tube, thereby increasing the active length of laser oscillation.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a laser discharge tube and a laser apparatus using the laser discharge tube, and more particularly to a laser discharge tube using a gas discharge and a laser apparatus using the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A metal vapor laser device is known as a conventional laser device using gas discharge. FIG. 34
Is, for example, “COPPER VAPOR LASERS CO” in the July 1982 issue of the magazine “Laser Focus”.
ME OF AGE (Copper vapor laser that has reached adulthood) "(ibid. 45)
FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram showing a conventional copper vapor laser device shown in pages 50 to 50), in which 1 is a high-voltage power supply device that supplies a high voltage for discharging the laser discharge tube 7, and 2 is a high-voltage power supply device. Charging reactor 3 for charging main capacitor 4 connected in series to 1 charges main capacitor 4 connected in series to charging reactor 2 to prevent backflow of current from main capacitor 4 The charging diode 4 for charging is connected in series to the charging diode 3, and the main capacitor 5 is charged in series with the main capacitor 4 to be charged by the high-voltage power supply device 1 for discharging the laser discharge tube 7. The charging resistor 6 for charging the main capacitor 4 is connected to the charging resistor 5 and the laser discharge tube 7 in parallel, and is a peak for sharpening the waveform of the discharge current of the main capacitor 4. A condenser 7, a laser discharge tube 7 connected in parallel to the charging resistor 5 and the peaking capacitor 6 for performing laser oscillation, and a reference numeral 8 connected between the main capacitor 4 and the laser discharge tube 7 and connected to the main capacitor 4. A main switch for applying the charged energy to the laser discharge tube 7, 9 is an inductance of the circuit, 10 is an inductance of the laser discharge tube 7, and 11 is a resistance of the laser discharge tube 7. Although not described in the above-mentioned document, as shown by a broken line in the drawing, a circuit branch in which a bypass diode 101 and a resistor 102 are connected in series is used as a main switch 8.
It is also being inserted in parallel to.

FIG. 35 (1) shows a current i ₁ flowing from the main capacitor 4 through the main switch 8 in the circuit of the conventional laser device shown in FIG. 34, and flowing into the laser discharge tube 7 through the peaking capacitor 6. It is a graph of waveforms showing the respective temporal change of the current i ₂ and oscillated laser light L, the voltage v _C between poles of (2) the main capacitor 4 in Fig.
5 is a graph of a waveform showing a temporal change of

FIG. 36 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of the structure of a conventional laser discharge tube 7, in which 12 is a discharge inner tube 17.
A cathode in a pair of electrodes to which a voltage for generating a pulse discharge is applied, the end point a of the laser discharge inner tube 17 on the center point side is a connection of the laser discharge tube 7 on the cathode side in the circuit of FIG. Corresponds to point a. Reference numeral 13 denotes an anode that makes a pair with the cathode 12, and 14 denotes a conductive outer cylinder that protects the outer surface of the laser discharge tube 7. The end point b on the cathode 12 side is the anode side of the laser discharge tube 7 in the circuit of FIG. It corresponds to the connection point b. 1
Reference numeral 5 is a window through which the oscillated laser beam is emitted to the outside, 16 is a heat insulating material for preventing the heat generated in the discharge inner tube 17 from being radiated to the outside, and 17 is a copper particle 19 which causes laser oscillation inside thereof. The discharge inner tube, 18 is an insulating breaker for electrically insulating the cathode 12 and the anode 13, and 19 is a copper grain for supplying copper vapor for generating laser oscillation.

FIG. 36 (b) is a graph showing an example of axial temperature distribution in the discharge inner tube 17 of the laser discharge tube 7 shown in FIG. 36 (a).

Next, the operation will be described. Main switch 8
When the high-voltage power supply device 1 is applied to this laser device in a state where is turned off, the high-voltage power supply device 1 causes the charging reactor 2, the charging diode 3, the charging resistor 5, and the inductance 9 of the circuit to pass through. The main capacitor 4 is charged with high voltage v _C. In this state, (1) of FIG.
When the main switch 8 is turned on at time t ₀ in (2), the charge charged in the main capacitor 4 by the charging voltage v _C of the main capacitor 4 becomes the currents i ₁ and i ₂ and the charging resistor 5, peaking capacitor 6 and Flowing in the laser discharge tube 7, pulse discharge is generated in the laser discharge tube 7, and laser oscillation is performed as shown in (1) of FIG. At this time, the life of the upper level of the laser of the copper vapor laser is extremely shorter than the life of the lower level thereof. Therefore, in order to perform the laser oscillation efficiently, the discharge current i ₂ supplied to the laser discharge tube 7 is Steepness is required. Therefore, the peaking capacitor 6 is inserted in order to improve the rounding of the waveform of the discharge current i ₁ due to the inductance 9 of the circuit. That is, the energy stored in the main capacitor 4 is temporarily stored in the peaking capacitor 6 via the inductance 9, and a sharp current is supplied from the peaking capacitor 6 to the laser discharge tube 7. As a result, the current i ₁ supplied from the main capacitor 4 to the laser discharge tube 7 has a current waveform having two peak values as shown in (1) of FIG. At this time, the voltage v _c between the both electrodes of the main capacitor 4 is inverted and a reverse voltage is generated as shown in (2) of FIG. This reverse voltage is applied to the bypass resistor 10
2 and the bypass diode 101 are discharged from the branch circuit for a long time and consumed as heat energy.

Next, to the laser discharge tube 7 shown in FIG. 36, a pulsed voltage that causes a current i ₂ to flow from the end points a and b through the outer tube 14 to the anode 13 and the cathode 12 is applied, and the discharge inner tube 17 is provided. A pulse discharge is generated inside. When the pulse discharge is repeatedly generated in the discharge inner tube 17, the heat insulating material 16 insulates the interior of the discharge inner tube 17 from the surroundings.
When heated to a high temperature of about 0 ° C., the copper grains 19 contained in the discharge inner tube 17 are melted to become copper vapor. When the pulse discharge is further continued in this state, the copper vapor is excited by the pulse discharge and laser oscillation is caused. The lased laser light is emitted to the outside through the window 15. When the inner discharge tube 17 is heated to a temperature of about 1500 ° C., the amount of heat escaped by heat radiation increases, and in particular, at the end of the inner discharge tube 17, the window 1
Since the radiant heat escapes via 5, the temperature easily drops. As a result, the temperature distribution inside the discharge inner tube 17 generally becomes a temperature distribution that sharply decreases at the end, as shown in FIG.

[0008]

Since the conventional laser device is constructed as described above, the laser light L output from the laser device is a current flowing through the laser discharge tube 7 as shown in FIG. is output in the first half of i _2, the current i ₂
The latter half of the above does not contribute effectively to laser oscillation. This arises from the relationship between the upper level and the lower level of the laser oscillation line, as described above. The waveform of the current i ₂ is
The peaking capacitor 6, the inductance 10 of the laser discharge tube 7 and the resistance 11 of the laser discharge tube 7 mainly determine the oscillation width of the series resonance.
Becomes larger, the inductance 10 becomes larger, the width of the current i ₂ becomes wider, and the ratio of the power supplied to the laser discharge tube 7 after laser oscillation increases. The current flowing after the laser oscillation (hereinafter, referred to as “subsequent current”: the shaded portion in FIG. 35) does not contribute to the laser oscillation, but also increases the number of lower levels of the laser oscillation line to lower the oscillation efficiency. In addition, in order to reduce the resistance 11 of the laser discharge tube 7 more than necessary, the resistance 11 of the laser discharge tube 7 is reduced in the oscillation operation of the next cycle.
There is a problem in that the voltage applied to the device is lowered, and the laser excitation becomes insufficient, resulting in damage. That is,
In the conventional laser device, there is a problem that the subsequent current after laser oscillation lowers the efficiency of laser oscillation and the power utilization efficiency is poor. Further, there is a problem that the inversion voltage of the main capacitor 4 and the peaking capacitor 6 is not effectively used, so that the power use efficiency is poor.

Further, in the copper vapor laser shown in FIG. 36, the laser output is generally proportional to the length of a region where the copper vapor density is equal to or more than a certain value (hereinafter referred to as "active length"). For example, in the graph of FIG. 37, assuming 1450 ° C. as the temperature for generating a copper vapor density above a certain level, the length x ₀ becomes an active length and the lengths x ₁ and x ₂ of the end portion of the discharge inner tube 17 become The part is not effectively used for laser excitation. If the input power to the laser discharge tube 7 is increased to increase the overall temperature, the lengths x ₁ and x ₂ also become 1450 ° C. or higher, but the temperature inside the discharge inner tube 17 near the center in the axial direction is increased. May rise excessively, and the inner discharge tube 17 may be thermally destroyed. Therefore, the discharge inner tube 1
When 7 is used within a temperature range where there is no risk of damage, there is a problem in that the vicinity of the end of the discharge inner tube 17 cannot be used for laser excitation, and the laser output and laser efficiency decrease. .

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object thereof is to obtain a laser device capable of increasing a laser output by cutting off a subsequent current after laser oscillation. And

It is an object of the present invention to provide a small and inexpensive laser device capable of increasing the laser output by cutting off the subsequent current after laser oscillation.

An object of the present invention is to provide a small and inexpensive laser device capable of increasing the laser output by almost completely eliminating the subsequent current after laser oscillation.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, a small and inexpensive laser device capable of increasing the laser output by almost completely eliminating the subsequent current after laser oscillation and capable of obtaining high laser efficiency at a low power supply voltage. Aim to get.

A fifth aspect of the present invention is a compact and inexpensive laser device capable of increasing the laser output by almost completely eliminating the subsequent current after laser oscillation and capable of obtaining high laser efficiency at a low power supply voltage. Aim to get.

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the laser output can be increased by almost completely eliminating the subsequent current after the laser oscillation, the high laser efficiency can be obtained with a low power supply voltage, and the main switch is overvoltage. It is an object of the present invention to obtain a highly reliable, small-sized and inexpensive laser device that is not destroyed by.

According to the invention of claim 7, it is possible to almost completely eliminate the subsequent current after laser oscillation to increase the laser output, obtain a high laser efficiency at a low power supply voltage, and make the main switch overvoltage. It is an object of the present invention to obtain a highly reliable, small-sized and inexpensive laser device that is not destroyed by.

It is an object of the present invention to obtain a highly reliable laser device capable of almost completely eliminating the subsequent current after laser oscillation, improving the efficiency of the laser device and increasing the laser output. To do.

It is an object of the present invention to obtain a highly reliable laser device capable of almost completely eliminating the subsequent current after laser oscillation, improving the efficiency of the laser device and increasing the laser output. To do.

According to the tenth aspect of the present invention, the subsequent current after laser oscillation can be almost completely eliminated to increase the laser output, high laser efficiency can be obtained with a low power supply voltage, and unnecessary for laser oscillation. An object of the present invention is to obtain a small-sized, inexpensive, highly efficient laser device capable of reusing electric power.

It is an object of the invention of claim 11 to obtain a laser device capable of increasing a laser output by cutting off a subsequent current after laser oscillation and obtaining a stable laser output.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a laser device capable of increasing the laser output by cutting off the subsequent current after laser oscillation and obtaining a more stable laser output.

According to the thirteenth aspect of the present invention, the subsequent current after laser oscillation can be almost completely eliminated to increase the laser output, and high laser efficiency can be obtained with a low power supply voltage, and a stable laser output can be obtained. It is an object of the present invention to obtain a small-sized and inexpensive laser device that can be obtained.

According to the fourteenth aspect of the present invention, the subsequent output current after laser oscillation can be almost completely eliminated to increase the laser output, high laser efficiency can be obtained with a low power supply voltage, and a more stable laser can be obtained. An object is to obtain a small-sized and inexpensive laser device that can obtain an output.

According to the fifteenth aspect of the present invention, the subsequent output current after laser oscillation can be almost completely eliminated to increase the laser output, high laser efficiency can be obtained with a low power supply voltage, and the laser output fluctuation can be obtained. It is an object of the present invention to obtain a small-sized and inexpensive laser device with stable output by suppressing the above.

It is an object of the inventions of claims 16 to 20 to obtain a highly efficient laser discharge tube having a high laser output.

[0026]

In the laser device according to the invention of claim 1, a discharge switch for discharging the electric charge charged in the main capacitor is connected in parallel with the main capacitor.

A laser device according to a second aspect of the present invention is provided with a control power supply for controlling the conduction timing of a discharge switch for discharging the electric charge charged in the main capacitor.

In the laser device according to the invention of claim 3, a discharge switch for discharging the electric charge charged in the main capacitor is connected in parallel with the main capacitor, and the main capacitor,
A diode is further connected in series to a series circuit having a main switch and a laser discharge tube.

A laser device according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is provided with a control device for turning off the main switch after half or more of the oscillation cycle of the current flowing through the series circuit has passed after the main switch was turned on.

In the laser apparatus according to the invention of claim 5, a diode is further connected in series to a series circuit having a main capacitor, a main switch and a laser discharge tube, and the oscillation cycle of the current flowing through the series circuit after the main switch is turned on. The control device is provided to turn off the main switch after more than half of the above.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the laser device, the capacitance value of the main capacitor is the sum of the peaking capacitor voltage and the main capacitor voltage at the time when the peaking capacitor voltage is inverted and becomes maximum. It is a capacitance value that is less than or equal to the rated voltage of the switch.

In the laser device according to the invention of claim 7, a snubber circuit, in which a snubber capacitor and a snubber diode are connected in series, and a snubber resistor is connected in parallel to the snubber capacitor, is connected in parallel to the main switch. It is a thing.

According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, in a laser device, a pulse circuit having a main capacitor and a main switch and a laser discharge tube are transformer-coupled with each other by a pulse transformer, and a vibration of a current flowing through the main switch after the main switch is turned on. It is provided with a control device that turns off the main switch after more than half of the cycle.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a laser device in which a pulse circuit having a main capacitor and a main switch and a laser discharge tube are transformer-coupled with each other, and the laser discharge tube and the secondary winding of the pulse transformer are connected in series. A diode is connected to the main switch, and a control device is provided to turn off the main switch after half or more of the oscillation cycle of the current flowing through the main switch has passed after the main switch was turned on.

The laser device according to the invention of claim 10 is provided with a regenerative circuit for returning the voltage charged in the peaking capacitor to the high-voltage power supply device or the main capacitor after the peaking capacitor voltage is inverted and rises. Is.

According to an eleventh aspect of the invention, a laser device detects a laser output level of the laser device, and controls the conduction timing of the discharge switch according to the laser output level detected by the laser output detection device. And a timing control device for controlling the timing.

According to the twelfth aspect of the present invention, the laser device is provided with a voltage control device for controlling the output voltage of the high voltage power supply device according to the output signal of the timing control device.

According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a laser device which detects the laser output level of the laser device and the timing of shutting off the main switch according to the laser output level detected by the laser output level. And a timing control device for controlling.

The laser device according to the fourteenth aspect of the present invention is provided with a voltage control device for controlling the output voltage of the high voltage power supply device in accordance with the output signal of the timing control device.

According to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a laser device, which includes a pulse signal generator for generating a pulse signal after a predetermined time has passed since the main switch was turned off, and a laser output detector for detecting the laser output level of the laser device. It is provided with a level control device for controlling the level of the pulse signal according to the laser output level, and a pulse signal application circuit for applying the level-controlled pulse signal to the laser discharge tube.

A laser discharge tube according to the invention of claim 16 is
A heating source is arranged around at least a pair of electrodes for generating pulsed discharge in the discharge inner tube.

The laser discharge tube according to the invention of claim 17 is
A heating electrode for generating a gas discharge is provided between the electrode and the electrode as a heating source.

In the laser apparatus according to the eighteenth aspect of the present invention, the heating source provided around the electrode of the laser discharge tube is provided with the supply device for supplying a part of the energy charged in the main capacitor.

According to a nineteenth aspect of the present invention, a laser device is provided with a supply device for supplying a part of the energy charged in the peaking capacitor to a heating source provided around the electrode of the laser discharge tube.

In the laser device according to the twentieth aspect of the invention, a charging impedance element for charging the main capacitor with the electric power of the high voltage power source is arranged as a heating source around the electrode of the laser discharge tube.

[0046]

In the laser device according to the present invention, the electric charge charged in the main capacitor is discharged by the discharge switch connected in parallel to the main capacitor, and unnecessary electric charge is supplied from the main capacitor to the laser discharge tube. Since this can be suppressed, a laser device with improved output efficiency can be obtained.

In the laser device according to the second aspect of the present invention, since the conduction timing of the discharge switch connected in parallel to the main capacitor is adjusted and controlled by the control power source to suppress the subsequent current, an expensive conduction timing control circuit is unnecessary. Therefore, it is possible to obtain a small and inexpensive laser device capable of increasing the laser output by cutting off the subsequent current after laser oscillation.

In the laser apparatus according to the third aspect of the present invention, the discharge switch connected in parallel with the main capacitor suppresses the supply of unnecessary charges from the main capacitor to the laser discharge tube, and is formed by the peaking capacitor and the laser discharge tube. Since the oscillation of the current generated in the resonant circuit is prevented by the diode connected in series with the laser discharge tube, the current flowing after laser oscillation can be almost completely eliminated, and the laser output can be increased. It is possible to obtain various laser devices.

In the laser device according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, after the main switch is turned on and more than half the oscillation period of the current flowing in the series circuit has passed, the main switch is turned off and unnecessary charges from the main capacitor to the laser discharge tube are removed. Since the supply is suppressed, the subsequent current after laser oscillation can be almost completely eliminated to increase the laser output, and the subsequent current does not occur even if the capacitance value of the main capacitor is increased. By increasing the value, the maximum value of the discharge current can be increased, and high laser efficiency can be obtained even with a low power supply voltage. Further, since a switch connected in parallel with the main capacitor is not necessary, it is possible to reduce the size of the device, reduce the cost, and improve the efficiency.

According to the fifth aspect of the laser device of the present invention, the oscillation of the current generated in the resonance circuit formed by the peaking capacitor and the laser discharge tube is prevented by the diode connected in series to the laser discharge tube, and the main switch is turned on. The main switch is turned off after more than half of the oscillation period of the current that flows in the series circuit later, and the supply of unnecessary charges from the main capacitor to the laser discharge tube is suppressed. It is possible to increase the laser output without removing it, and since the subsequent current does not occur even if the capacitance value of the main capacitor is increased, the capacitance value of the main capacitor is increased to increase the maximum value of the discharge current and lower the power supply voltage. However, high laser efficiency can be obtained. Further, since a switch connected in parallel with the main capacitor is not necessary, it is possible to reduce the size of the device, reduce the cost, and improve the efficiency.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the laser device, the sum of the peaking capacitor voltage and the main capacitor voltage is the main switch when the capacitance value of the main capacitor becomes maximum due to the peaking capacitor voltage reversal. Since the capacitance value is less than or equal to the rated voltage of, the laser device according to the invention of claim 4 or 5 can be obtained, and at the same time, the main switch is not damaged by overvoltage and a highly reliable laser device can be obtained. You can

In the laser device according to the invention of claim 7, the snubber circuit connected in parallel to the main switch absorbs the overvoltage applied to the main switch by inverting and increasing the voltage of the peaking capacitor. Since the applied voltage is suppressed to be equal to or lower than the rated voltage of the main switch, the operation of the laser device according to the fourth or fifth aspect of the invention is achieved, and at the same time, the main switch is not damaged by an overvoltage and is a highly reliable laser. The device can be obtained.

In the laser device according to the invention of claim 8, a high laser oscillation efficiency is obtained by boosting the voltage generated by the pulse circuit having the main capacitor and the main switch by the pulse transformer and applying it to the laser discharge tube. ,
Also, by turning off the main switch in the middle of the current pulse, it is possible to prevent unnecessary charges from being supplied from the main capacitor to the laser discharge tube via the pulse transformer, and to almost completely eliminate the current that flows after the end of laser oscillation. Therefore, the efficiency of the laser device can be improved, and since the circuit component on the primary side of the pulse transformer can have a low breakdown voltage, a highly reliable laser device can be obtained.

In the laser device according to the invention of claim 9, a high laser oscillation efficiency can be obtained by boosting the voltage generated by the pulse circuit having the main capacitor and the main switch by the pulse transformer and applying it to the laser discharge tube. ,
Also, by turning off the main switch in the middle of the current pulse, it is possible to prevent unnecessary charges from being supplied from the main capacitor to the laser discharge tube via the pulse transformer.
The oscillation of the current generated in the resonance circuit formed by the peaking capacitor and the laser discharge tube is prevented by the diode connected in series with the laser discharge tube, and the current flowing after the end of laser oscillation can be almost completely eliminated. The efficiency can be improved, and since a component having a low breakdown voltage can be used as the circuit component on the primary side of the pulse transformer, a highly reliable laser device can be obtained.

A laser device according to the invention of claim 10 is
In addition to the operation of the laser device according to the present invention, the voltage charged in the peaking capacitor is returned to the high-voltage power supply device or the main capacitor by the regenerative circuit after the voltage of the peaking capacitor is inverted and rises. Further, the power unnecessary for laser oscillation can be reused, and the efficiency of the laser device can be improved.

The laser device according to the invention of claim 11 is
Since the timing control device controls the conduction timing of the discharge switch according to the laser output level detected by the laser output detection device, the laser output can be made constant by the conduction timing, and a stable high level laser output can be obtained. You can

According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a laser device comprising:
In addition to the operation of the laser device according to the invention of claim 11, since the output voltage of the high voltage power source is controlled by the conduction timing, the input power to the laser discharge tube can be made constant even if the conduction timing is changed, and further stable. The obtained laser output can be obtained.

According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a laser device comprising:
Since the timing control device controls the timing of shutting off the main switch according to the laser output level detected by the laser output detection device, it is possible to obtain a small, inexpensive and efficient laser device that can obtain a stable output at a high level. it can.

A laser device according to a fourteenth aspect of the invention is
In addition to the effect of the laser device according to the invention of claim 13, the output voltage of the high voltage power supply device is controlled by the voltage control device in accordance with the output signal of the timing control device, and the high voltage power supply device is controlled accordingly even when the timing changes. Since the output voltage changes and the input power to the laser discharge tube becomes constant, the laser output can be further stabilized.

According to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a laser device comprising:
By applying a pulse signal having a magnitude corresponding to the laser output level to the laser discharge tube a predetermined time after the main switch is turned off, the laser discharge tube is preliminarily ionized to control the laser output level. As a result, in addition to the effect of the invention of claim 4 by turning off the main switch, an effect that a stable laser device with a small output level fluctuation can be obtained can be obtained.

In the laser discharge tube according to the sixteenth aspect of the present invention, the temperature of the end portion inside the discharge inner tube is raised by heating the electrode by a heating source arranged around the electrode, and the temperature distribution inside the discharge inner tube is increased. Since the homogenization is performed, the effective region of laser oscillation is expanded, and the laser output and laser efficiency of the laser discharge tube can be increased.

A laser discharge tube according to a seventeenth aspect of the present invention has the function of the laser discharge tube according to the sixteenth aspect of the invention, and a gas discharge generated between a heating electrode that is a heating source and an electrode of the laser discharge tube. A large amount of electrons are emitted in the vicinity of the electrodes of the laser discharge tube, the voltage drop in the vicinity of the electrodes is reduced, and a high voltage is applied to the laser effective area, thereby further improving the laser output and laser efficiency of the laser discharge tube. Can be raised.

A laser device according to the eighteenth aspect of the invention is
Since a part of the energy charged in the main capacitor is supplied by the supply device to the heating source provided around the electrode of the laser discharge tube, the energy can be effectively used, and a laser device with high output and high efficiency can be obtained. .

A laser device according to a nineteenth aspect of the invention is
Since a part of the energy charged in the peaking capacitor is supplied by the supply device to the heating source provided around the electrode of the laser discharge tube, the energy can be effectively used, and a laser device with high output and high efficiency can be obtained. .

According to the twentieth aspect of the invention,
Since the charging impedance element heats the periphery of the electrode of the laser discharge tube, heat generation in the charging impedance element can be effectively utilized without waste, and a laser device with high output and high efficiency and a simple configuration can be obtained.

[0066]

EXAMPLES Example 1. Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In FIG. 1, 1 is a high-voltage power supply device, 2
Is a charging reactor connected in series to the high-voltage power supply device 3, 3 is a charging diode connected in series to the charging reactor 2, 4 is charged by the high-voltage power supply device 1, connected in series to the charging diode 3 Main capacitor, 5
Is a charging resistor connected in series with the main capacitor 4, 6
Is a peaking capacitor that is connected in parallel to the laser discharge tube 7 to make the waveform of the discharge current from the main capacitor 4 steep, and 7 is connected in parallel to the charging resistor 5 and the peaking capacitor 6 to discharge the main capacitor 4. A laser discharge tube 8, which is discharged by a current, is connected in series to the main capacitor 4 and the laser discharge tube 7, and is a main switch that supplies the discharge current of the main capacitor 4 to the laser discharge tube 7 so that the current flows in the reverse direction of a thyratron or the like. No element is used. 9
Is the inductance of the circuit of this embodiment, and 20 is a suppressing thyratron (discharge switch) for discharging the electric charge charged in the main capacitor 4, which is an anode terminal A, a cathode terminal K, a first grid terminal G ₁ , and a second grid terminal. G ₂ , a heater terminal H, and a reservoir terminal R are provided. 21 is connected in series with the suppression thyratron 20,
A suppression resistor for limiting the discharge current of the main capacitor 4, which is connected in parallel with the suppression thyratron 20 to the main capacitor 4, 22 is connected to each terminal of the suppression thyratron 20, and the operation of the suppression thyratron 20. An auxiliary circuit 23 for controlling the control circuit is connected between both terminals of the second grid terminal G ₂ and the cathode terminal K of the suppression thyratron 20 to suppress the ease of conduction of the suppression thyratron 20. Is a suppression thyratron 20,
Suppression resistor 21, auxiliary circuit 22, and suppression capacitor 23
And 101 is a bypass diode for slowly attenuating the inversion voltage of the main capacitor 4 when the main capacitor 4 is discharged together with the charging resistor 5 and the bypass resistor 102, and 102 is connected in series to the bypass diode 101. A bypass resistor connected in parallel with the main switch 8 together with the bypass diode 101.

FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram showing details of the configuration of the auxiliary circuit 22. In the figure, reference numerals 24a to 24e are filter capacitors 25a to 25e and a filter reactor 25 for protecting the auxiliary circuit 22 from a pulsed high voltage.
a to 25e have filter reactors 24a at one end, respectively.
To 24e and the other end of which is grounded, a filter capacitor 26 is a reservoir power supply (control power supply) for controlling the ease of conduction of the suppression thyratron 20, and is connected to the output terminal of the filter reactor 24d and the filter reactor 24d.
It is connected between the output terminal of e and the suppression thyratron 2
A direct current can be supplied to the reservoir terminal R of 0 and the direct current can be adjusted. Reference numeral 27 denotes a heater power supply for the suppression thyratron 20, which is connected between the output terminal of the filter reactor 24c and the output terminal of the filter reactor 24e and supplies a direct current to the heater terminal H of the suppression thyratron 20. 28 is the first grid power supply of the suppression thyratron 20 and is the filter reactor 24b.
Is connected to the output terminal of the filter reactor 24e and a positive DC voltage is applied to the first grid G ₁ of the suppressing thyratron 20. Reference numeral 29 is a second grid power source of the suppression thyratron 20, which is an output terminal of the filter reactor 24a and the filter reactor 24e.
Connected to the output terminal of the control thyratron 20
Is applied to the second grid G ₂ of DC. Incidentally, the second grid terminal G ₂ of the power supply 26 to 29 and the opposite side of the filter reactor 24a~24e terminals respectively suppression thyratron 20, a first grid terminal G _1, heater terminal H, the reservoir terminal R, to the cathode terminal K It is connected.

Next, the operation will be described. Main switch 8
With the power off, the main capacitor 4 is charged with a high voltage from the high voltage power supply 1 through the charging reactor 2, the charging diode 3 and the charging resistor 5. When the main switch 8 is turned on in this state, the charges charged in the main capacitor 4 by the charging voltage of the main capacitor 4 flow into the laser discharge tube 7 together with the charging resistor 5 and the peaking capacitor 6 as currents i ₁ and i ₂ . A pulse discharge is generated in the laser discharge tube 7, laser oscillation occurs, and laser light is emitted to the outside. When the suppression thyratron 20 is turned on while the laser discharge tube 7 is oscillating with laser, the charge of the main capacitor 4 flows in the branch circuit composed of the suppression thyratron 20 and the suppression resistor 21, and the main capacitor 4
The voltage between the two electrodes of the battery drops sharply. As a result, the current after the first pulse-shaped peak of the current i ₁ flowing through the main switch 8 can be suppressed, so that the subsequent current flowing through the laser discharge tube 7 can be suppressed.

When the main switch 8 is turned on, a pulsed high voltage is applied to the cathode terminal K of the suppression thyratron 20, so that the first grid terminal G ₁ , the second grid terminal G ₂ , and the heater terminal. A high voltage also appears at each terminal of H and the reservoir terminal R. The high voltage appearing at each terminal is the filter reactors 24a to 24e of the auxiliary circuit 22.
Is attenuated by the filter circuit including the filter capacitors 25a to 25e, and the internal power supplies 26 to 29 are protected from damage due to high voltage.

When the voltage of the reservoir power supply 26 is increased to increase the current supplied to the reservoir of the suppressing thyratron 20, the suppressing thyratron 20 is very easily ignited, and in particular, the main switch 8 is turned on and the main switch 8 is turned on. When the voltage of the capacitor 4 is sharply applied to the cathode terminal K of the suppressing thyratron 20, the suppressing thyratron 20 automatically becomes conductive even if the trigger signal is not input to the second grid terminal G ₂ . Therefore, by adjusting the voltage of the reservoir power supply 26, it is possible to control the ease of conduction of the suppression thyratron 20. When the easiness of conduction is changed, the operation delay time (anode lay time) of the suppression thyratron 20 is changed, and therefore the first grid terminal G
_It is possible to easily control the conduction time of the suppression thyratron 20 only by adjusting the voltage of the reservoir power supply 26 without requiring a circuit for supplying a signal to ₁ . The suppression capacitor 23 appropriately moderates the ease of conduction in which the suppression thyratron 20 conducts due to the pulse voltage generated when the main switch 8 conducts. If the capacitance value of the suppression capacitor 23 is increased, the suppression thyratron 20 is less likely to conduct, the voltage of the reservoir power supply 26 can be set high, and the rising characteristics of the suppression thyratron 20 can be made sharp (generally, the reservoir voltage If it is raised, the rise of the current flowing through the suppression thyratron 20 becomes steep.) On the contrary, if the capacitance value of the suppression capacitor 23 is reduced, the reservoir voltage can be lowered and the suppression thyratron 2
The working voltage of 0 can be set high (generally, setting the reservoir voltage low will increase the withstand voltage of the suppressing thyratron 20).

FIG. 3 is a graph showing the current waveform and the voltage waveform of each part of the embodiment shown in FIGS. (1) The discharge current i ₁ from the main capacitor 4, the current i ₂ flowing through the laser discharge tube 7 and the waveform of the excited laser light L in FIG. 3 are plotted with respect to the time axis t. (2) It is an enlarged view of the portion of the current i ₂ surrounded by the arc (1) in FIG. 3, and shows (3) the temporal change of the voltage v _Cd between both electrodes of the main capacitor 4 in FIG. The voltage v _CP between both poles of the peaking capacitor 6 (4) in FIG.
3 shows the time variation of the induced voltage v _L1 generated across the inductance 9 of the circuit (5) of FIG. The waveform plotted with the solid line in the graph of FIG. 3 is the waveform when the suppression thyratron 20 is operated, and the waveform shown with the broken line is the waveform when the suppression thyratron 20 is not operated.

When the main switch 8 is turned on at time t ₀ , the charges charged in the main capacitor 4 by the charging voltage v _Cd of the main capacitor 4 are supplied to the laser discharge tube 7 as currents i ₁ and i ₂ as in the conventional example. As shown in (1) of FIG. 3, the discharge current i ₁ increases, the voltage v _Cd decreases as shown in (3) of FIG. 3, and the peaking capacitor increases as shown in (4) of FIG. 6 starts to be charged with the reverse polarity, and the voltage v _L1 across the inductance 9 which has momentarily increased starts to decrease as shown in (5) of FIG. After turning on the main switch 8,
When the suppression thyratron 20 is turned on at time t ₁ after the τ _o time set by the magnitude of the output voltage value of the reservoir power supply 26 and the capacitance value of the suppression capacitor 23, the suppression is performed as shown in (3) of FIG. Current i _x for the thyratron 20
Flows, with a peak value in synchronization with the laser emission from the laser discharge tube 7, the voltage v _Cd bipolar plates of the main capacitor 4 as shown in solid line in (3) in FIG. 3 begins to decrease rapidly As a result, as shown in (1), the latter half of the discharge current i ₁ flowing through the main switch 8 changes from a broken line to a waveform in which the peak of the latter half is greatly reduced as shown by the solid line, and accordingly flows into the laser discharge tube 7. The current i ₂ is (2) in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 7, the waveform changes from the broken line to the solid line, and the subsequent current of the portion S ₁ hatched in a reticulated pattern is suppressed and reduced. Further, as shown in (5) of FIG. 3, the voltage v _L1 across the inductance 9 also decreases as indicated by the solid line. The inversion voltage v _cdrmax of the main capacitor 4 is a slow time as shown by (3) by the charging resistor 5, the bypass diode 101 and the bypass resistor 102 because the main switch 8 does not flow a current in the reverse direction. Attenuated. The peaking capacitor 6 is (4)
As shown in ( ₄ ), the battery is once charged to the opposite polarity and then charged to the positive polarity due to vibration (charging voltage v _cpx ).

In the first embodiment, the suppressing thyratron 2 is used.
By connecting 0 to the main capacitor 4 in parallel to suppress the subsequent current, the laser output efficiency can be improved, and at the same time, an expensive grid pulse generation circuit is not used for controlling the conduction timing of the suppression thyratron 20. In addition, since the control is performed by changing the magnitude of the voltage of the reservoir power supply 26, an inexpensive and small laser device can be realized.

Example 2. FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram showing the configuration of Embodiment 2 of the laser device according to the present invention. 4, the same components as those of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1 are designated by the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted. Note that, also in the embodiments described below, the same components are given the same numbers and the description thereof is omitted.

In FIG. 4, 31 is a reverse current blocking diode connected in series with the laser discharge tube 7, and 32 is a second charging resistor connected in parallel with the reverse current blocking diode (diode) 31.

Next, the operation will be described. This Example 2
Also in the above, the subsequent current suppressing circuit 30 suppresses the subsequent current. Further, when the reverse current blocking diode 31 is not inserted, the peaking capacitor 6 shown in (4) of FIG.
The reverse current blocking diode 31 blocks the oscillating current generated in the closed circuit formed by the peaking capacitor 6 and the laser discharge tube 7 due to the peak voltage value v _cpx charged in FIG.
As shown in (1) of FIG.
_The reverse current indicated by the broken line ₂ (the shaded portion S ₂ in (1) and (2) of FIG. 3) does not flow, and the subsequent current can be more sufficiently suppressed. The second charging resistor 32 functions as a bypass circuit for supplying a charging current when the main capacitor 4 is charged by the high voltage power supply device 1. Also, FIG.
As indicated by (3) in (3), the peaking capacitor 6 has a function of gradually discharging the voltage v _cpx due to the electric charge charged together with the charging resistor 5.

In this embodiment, the subsequent current suppressing circuit 30 and the reverse current blocking diode 31 serve to suppress the subsequent current more completely.

Example 3. FIG. 6 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration of a third embodiment of the laser device according to the present invention. In the figure,
Reference numeral 8X is a main switch including a semiconductor series-parallel switching element or the like and having an off function, which is turned off at a predetermined timing by a control device (not shown). In this embodiment, the charging resistor 5 is connected to the anode side of the reverse current blocking diode 31. Further, the bypass diode 101 and the bypass resistor 102 are not provided.

Next, the operation will be described. Main switch 8
X receives the control pulse from the control device, and is turned off after half the oscillation period of the current flowing through the main switch 8X after the main switch 8X is turned on (time t _{2 in} FIG. 7), and Since the circuit including the capacitor 4 is an open circuit, the peak of the latter half of the discharge current i ₁ from the main capacitor 4 does not occur and the subsequent current is suppressed. Further, due to the action of the reverse current blocking diode 31, the resonance vibration between the peaking capacitor 6 and the laser discharge tube 7 is suppressed, and the residual subsequent current does not flow. Further, since the charging resistor 5 is connected to the anode side of the reverse current blocking diode 31,
It is possible to charge the main capacitor 4 from the high-voltage power supply device 1 without providing the second charging resistor 32. Incidentally, it goes without saying that the configuration in which the charging resistor 5 is connected to the anode side of the reverse current blocking diode 31 can also be taken in the second embodiment of FIG.

By suppressing the subsequent current by the main switch 8X, the following effects can be obtained. That is, first, since the suppression thyratron 20 and the suppression resistor 21 are not used, there is no loss generated by these elements,
Further, if the discharge current i ₁ flowing out from the main capacitor 4 is cut off by the main switch 8X, the voltage of the main capacitor 4 does not change anymore and therefore does not invert, and the bypass resistor which consumes this inversion voltage. It is not necessary to provide 102, and the loss in the bypass resistor 102 is eliminated. For these reasons, the power supply efficiency is significantly increased and the power supply device can be downsized.

Secondly, the capacitance value of the main capacitor 4 can be increased, so that a high discharge current i ₁ can be supplied to the laser discharge tube 7. In the conventional laser device shown in FIG. 34, when the capacity of the main capacitor 4 is increased as shown in FIG. 7, the current i ₂ flowing through the laser discharge tube 7 is increased.
The maximum value of is monotonically increased to i ₂₁ , i ₂₂ , i ₂₃ , etc., and the laser pumping ability is increased at first glance, but the subsequent current (the hatched portion in the figure) is also monotonically increased. The number of lower-level particles increased, the resistance 11 of the laser discharge tube 7 decreased, and the plasma voltage decreased, which adversely decreased the laser excitation ability and decreased the oscillation efficiency as a whole. However, in the third embodiment, the discharge current i ₁
By turning off the main switch 8X after the end of the first peak waveform of, the maximum value of the current i ₂ monotonically increases if the capacitance value of the main capacitor 4 is increased.
Even if the capacitance value is increased, the subsequent current of the current i ₂ does not occur. Therefore, increasing the capacitance value of the main capacitor 4,
By turning off the main switch 8X after the end of the first peak waveform of the discharge current i ₁ , it is possible to significantly increase the laser pumping ability and increase the laser oscillation efficiency and the laser output without generating the subsequent current. . In the conventional example, the capacitance value of the main capacitor 4 was set to about twice as large as the capacitance value of the peaking capacitor 6, but in this Example 3
In, the subsequent current does not flow even if the ratio is set to double or more, and high laser pumping ability is obtained. In the conventional example, a method of increasing the charging voltage of the main capacitor 4 was used to increase the excitation ability, but in the third embodiment, if the capacitance value of the main capacitor 4 is increased even if the charging voltage is low, the laser discharge tube is increased. Since the excitation capability of 7 increases and the high-voltage device 1 having a low power supply voltage can be used, the reliability of the laser device is significantly increased.

By the way, when the main switch 8X is turned off, the electromagnetic energy of the inductance 9 of the circuit is transferred to the main switch 8X.
Although it is treated as a switching loss of X, if this switching loss becomes large, the efficiency of the laser device will decrease. The value P _L1off of the electromagnetic energy processed as switching loss per unit time is as follows:
It is expressed as a function of the value L ₁ of the inductance 9 of the circuit, the repetition frequency f of the operation of the main switch 8X, and the current value I _OFF when the main switch 8X is off. P _L1off = 0.5 × L ₁ × I _OFF ² × f <P ₀ × 0.2 In order to prevent the value P _{L1off of} this electromagnetic energy per unit time from increasing, as shown in the above equation, P _L1off is a laser device. The efficiency does not decrease significantly, that is, P
_The circuit conditions (specifically, the values of the main capacitor 4 and the inductance 9 of the circuit are selected and set) are selected so that _L1off is 20% or less of the total input power P ₀ to the laser discharge tube 7. preferable.

Next, (1) and (2) of FIG. 8 show the voltage v _cp between the both plates of the peaking capacitor 6 in the third embodiment,
7 is a graph showing waveforms of a voltage v _SW across both ends of a main switch 8X, a voltage v _cd between both electrode plates of the main capacitor 4, a discharge current i ₁ and a current i ₂ . As is clear from the figure, the voltage v _cp initially increases in the negative direction, but at the time t at which the current i ₂ becomes maximum.
_{After 2} the voltage v _cp is positively inverted, and when the maximum voltage value v _cpx is reached, the reverse current blocking diode 31 blocks the charge from flowing out from the peaking capacitor 6 and holds the maximum voltage value v _cpx . Then, the voltage v _cd of the main capacitor 4 is initially by the discharge current i ₁ flows out decreases monotonically, but the time t ₂ after the main switch 8X is turned off because the discharging current i ₁ does not flow out, the voltage v _cd keeps a constant value,
The voltage value v _cdx is retained. On the other hand, the voltage v _SW applied across the main switch 8X is represented by the sum of the voltages v _cd and v _cp after the time t ₂ when the main switch 8X is turned off, and the maximum voltage value v _SWX is the voltage v _cdx. And the voltage v _cpx . Therefore, the maximum voltage value v _SWX may exceed the withstand voltage rated value E _SWmax of the main switch 8X, depending on the conditions of the two. 8 (3) and (4) are main capacitors 4
Voltage values v _cp , v _cd when the capacitance value Cd of
It is the graph which plotted the waveform which shows the state of change of _vSW . As is clear from (3) and (4) of FIG. 8, when the capacitance value Cd is increased, both the maximum voltage values v _cdX and v _cpx are increased. Therefore, the capacitance value Cd of the main capacitor 4
If too large, the maximum voltage value v of the main switch 8X
_SWX exceeds the withstand voltage rating value E _SWmax . In the third embodiment, in order to prevent damage to the main switch 8X,
The sum of the maximum voltage value v _cdx maximum voltage value v _cpx main capacitor 4 of the peaking capacitor 6 is set to the capacitance value of the main capacitor 4 so as not to exceed the withstand voltage rated value E _SWmax main switch 8X. This prevents damage to the main switch 8X due to overvoltage.

Example 4. FIG. 9 is a circuit diagram showing the structure of a fourth embodiment of the laser apparatus according to the present invention. In the figure,
33 is a snubber diode, 34 is the snubber diode 3
3 is a snubber capacitor connected in series, and 35 is a snubber resistor connected in parallel to the snubber capacitor 34. The snubber diode 33, the snubber capacitor 34, and the snubber resistor 35 form a snubber circuit, and the main switch 8
This serves to keep the voltage applied across both ends of X below a predetermined voltage value. The capacitance value Cs of the snubber capacitor 34 is selected to be sufficiently larger than the capacitance value Cd of the main capacitor 4, and the product of the resistance value Rs of the snubber resistor 35 and the capacitance value Cs of the snubber capacitor 34 is the main switch 8X. It is selected long enough for the repeated operation cycle.

Next, the operation will be described. As described above, since the time constant is large and the capacitance value Cs is large, the current flowing into the snubber circuit during one cycle of the discharge current i ₁ flowing through the main switch 8X is not affected by the current flowing between the both ends of the snubber circuit. The voltage hardly changes. Therefore, even if the maximum voltage value v _SWX across the main switch 8X is increased and an excessive voltage is applied to the main switch 8X, the snubber capacitor 34 absorbs it and the snubber capacitor 3
Snubber capacitor 3 due to the charge already stored in 4
It is prevented that a voltage equal to or higher than a voltage value of a substantially constant value between the both electrode plates of No. 4 is applied to the main switch 8X. Here, the constant voltage value v _CS0 between the bipolar plates of the snubber capacitor 34.
Is settled at a value that can balance the current flowing in due to the increase in the voltage value v _SW across the main switch 8X and the current consumed by being discharged by the snubber resistor 35. Figure 10
(1) and (2) are the discharge current i ₁ , the current i ₂ , the voltage v _cd between the plates of the main capacitor 4, the voltage v _cp between the plates of the peaking capacitor 6 and the main switch of the fourth embodiment. It is a graph showing the waveform of the voltage v _SW across 8X,
After the time t ₂ when the main switch 8X is turned off, the voltage v _cp between the plates of the peaking capacitor 6 is inverted and increased, and the voltage v _SW across the main switch 8X is also increased. However, the voltage v _SW is equal to the constant voltage value E of the snubber capacitor 34.
_{When d0} is exceeded, the current i flows through the snubber capacitor 34 in FIG.
_S flows in and the voltage v _SW is clipped to the voltage value E _d0 . Therefore, the voltage higher than the voltage value E _d0 is not applied to the main switch 8X. Here, since the same voltage is applied to the main switch 8X when the main capacitor 4 is charged by the high voltage power supply device 1, the voltage v applied to the main capacitor 4 is
_cd0 is also applied to the snubber capacitor 34, and basically the voltage v _cd0 becomes the voltage value E _d0 . However, the charge flow Q _sin flowing into the snubber capacitor 34 ((1) in FIG.
When the relationship between the voltage V _cd0 and the voltage V _cd0 is as follows, Q _sin > v _cd0 / Rs / f (f is a repetition frequency) The voltage value E _d0 is further than the voltage v _cd0. Will rise. At this time, the voltage at which the voltage value E _d0 finally settles needs to be equal to or lower than the withstand voltage rated value E _SWmax of the main switch 8X, so that the resistance value Rs is set so that Q _sin <E _SWmax / Rs / f eventually holds. You can select it.

In the fourth embodiment, the main switch 8X
A snubber circuit is connected in parallel with the snubber resistor 35 so that the voltage v _SW applied across the main switch 8X does not _exceed the withstand voltage rated value E _{SWmax of the} main switch 8X.
Since the value of is selected, the main switch 8X is protected from damage due to overvoltage.

Example 5. FIG. 11 is a circuit diagram showing the configuration of the fifth embodiment of the laser device according to the present invention. In the figure, 36 is a pulse transformer whose primary winding is connected in series to the main switch 8X and the main capacitor 4, and whose secondary winding is connected in series with the laser discharge tube 7 reverse current blocking and the diode 31, The peaking capacitor 6 is connected in parallel to the secondary winding of the pulse transformer 36. The turns ratio of the temporary winding and the secondary winding of the pulse transformer 36 is 1: n.
(1 <n).

Next, the operation will be described. Main switch 8
When X conducts, the voltage v _cd across the plates of the main capacitor 4
Is multiplied by n and applied as a voltage n · v _cd between both plates of the peaking capacitor 6.
A current i ₂ flows through the laser discharge tube 7 due to the voltage n · v _cd between the two electrode plates, causing laser oscillation. Main switch 8X
Turns off after the end of the first peak waveform when more than half of the oscillation cycle of the discharge current i ₁ has passed, and the same effect as in Example 3 is obtained. In the fifth embodiment, since the voltage can be boosted by the pulse transformer 36, the voltage on the primary side can be kept low, and the main switch 8X and the main capacitor 4 can be controlled.
It is possible to use a component having a low withstand voltage. As a result, the reliability of the laser device can be significantly improved.

Example 6. FIG. 12 is a circuit diagram showing the configuration of Embodiment 6 of the laser apparatus according to the present invention. In the figure, 37 is a regenerative transformer whose primary winding is connected in parallel with the peaking capacitor 6, 38 is a saturable reactor connected in series with the primary winding of the regenerative transformer 37,
39 is a freewheeling diode connected in parallel to the secondary winding of the regenerative transformer 37, 40 is a regenerative inductance connected to the cathode side of the freewheeling diode 39, and 41 is a regenerative diode connected in series to the regenerative inductance 40. The regenerative transformer 37, the saturable reactor 38, the freewheeling diode 37, the regenerative inductance 40, and the regenerative diode 41 form a regenerative circuit that returns the voltage charged in the peaking capacitor 6 to the high-voltage power supply device 1.

FIG. 13 is a detailed circuit diagram of the high voltage power supply device 1 of FIG. In the figure, 42 is a regenerative diode 41.
A charging power source having a charging terminal connected to its cathode, 43 is a switching transistor that is connected to the positive side of the charging power source 42 and performs a switching operation by a control circuit (not shown), and 44 is an emitter of the transistor 43. A resistor for magnetic flux reset connected between earth and
45a has its primary winding connected in parallel to the resistor 44,
The step-up transformer has one end of the secondary winding connected to the charging reactor 2.

Next, the operation will be described. For example, in the second embodiment shown in FIG. 4, as shown in FIG. 5, after the voltage v _cp between the plates of the peaking capacitor 6 is inverted and reaches the maximum value v _cpx , it is discharged for a long time. And then decay. Therefore, the voltage v _cpx across the plates of the peaking capacitor 6 is _consumed by the first charging resistor 5 and the second charging resistor 32 and is not effectively used. The sixth embodiment _reuses the voltage v _cpx of the peaking capacitor 6 which is not used in the above-described embodiments.

In the sixth embodiment of FIG. 12, the inductance of the saturable reactor 38 in the non-saturated state is the regenerative transformer 37.
Is sufficiently larger than the excitation inductance of. First, when the main switch 8X having an off function is turned on, a negative voltage charged between the both plates of the peaking capacitor 6 is applied to the laser discharge tube 7, but at this time, the saturable reactor 38 has a magnetic flux that is unsaturated. Since a large inductance is exhibited in the state, almost no voltage is applied to the regeneration transformer 37. Therefore, it does not affect the laser oscillation operation of the laser discharge tube 7. Next, the main switch 8X having an off function is turned off, and the peaking capacitor 6
The voltage across the bipolar plates of _V.sub.x is inverted and reaches the maximum value _v.sub.cpx . After that, the electric charge charged between the both plates of the peaking capacitor 6 is discharged for a long time through the first charging resistor 5, so that the saturable reactor 38 also has a long voltage between the both plates of the peaking capacitor 6. It is applied for a time to saturate the magnetic flux of the saturable reactor 38. When the saturable reactor 38 is saturated, its inductance becomes small, so that a current starts to flow in the primary winding of the regenerative transformer 37 and a voltage is generated on the secondary side of the regenerative transformer 37. The voltage generated on the secondary side of the regenerative transformer 37 is input to the high-voltage power supply device 1 via the regenerative inductance 40 and the regenerative diode 41.

In the high-voltage power supply device 1, when the transistor 43 is turned on by the pulse R _K from the control circuit thereof, the voltage output from the charging power supply 42 is boosted by the step-up transformer 45a via the transistor 43, and the voltage for charging is charged. The main capacitor 4 is charged via the reactor 2 and the charging diode 3. The magnetic flux of the step-up transformer 45 is reset by the resistor 44. The current i ₀ is generated by the voltage generated on the secondary side of the regeneration transformer 37.
Flows, regenerative inductance 40 and regenerative diode 41
Is input to the charging power source 42 via.

When the voltage and current waveforms during the above operation are shown, as shown in FIG. 14, when the voltage between the bipolar plates of the peaking capacitor 6 reaches the maximum voltage value v _cpx at time t ₃ , after that, the time τ _At time t ₄ when only _{sL has} elapsed, saturable reactor 38 becomes conductive and current i ₀ flows into charging power supply 42. As a result, the voltage v ₀ of the charging power supply 42 rises due to the inflow current i _{0 and} can be used again for charging the main capacitor 4. The return diode 39 is used as a bypass when the regenerative inductance 40 returns. Also,
In the sixth embodiment, the regeneration transformer 37 is used as the regeneration method.
Although the saturable reactor 38 and the like are used, any method may be used as long as the electric charge charged in the peaking capacitor 6 is regenerated in the high-voltage power supply device 1. further,
Although the high voltage power supply device 1 is used as the regeneration destination in the sixth embodiment, it may be directly regenerated to the main capacitor 4 as shown by the dotted line in FIG.

As described above, in the sixth embodiment, the voltage v _cpx due to the electric charge remaining in the peaking capacitor 6 can be regenerated to the high voltage power supply device 1 and the main capacitor 4, so that the energy can be effectively used and the efficiency of the laser device can be greatly improved. Up to.

Example 7. FIG. 15 is a circuit diagram showing the configuration of a seventh embodiment of the laser device according to the present invention. In the figure, 45b is a grid transformer in which the secondary winding is inserted between the second grid terminal G ₂ of the suppression thyratron 20 and one end of the auxiliary circuit 22 filter reactor 24a,
Reference numeral 46 is a timing controller (timing control device) for controlling the conduction timing of the suppression thyratron 20 according to the output level of the laser device, and its x _t terminal is connected to the on / off control terminal of the main switch 8 and y _t terminals at one end of the grid de-lance 45b primary winding, z _t terminal is connected to other end of the primary winding of the grid de-lance 45b. Reference numeral 47 is a laser power meter (laser output detection device) for detecting the output level of the laser device, the output terminal of which is connected to the input terminal of the timing controller 46.

FIG. 17 is a circuit diagram showing a detailed configuration of the timing controller 46. Reference numeral 147 is a reference trigger oscillator for generating a trigger signal which serves as a reference for the operation of the timing controller 46, and 48 is an output terminal of the reference trigger oscillator 147. Comparator 5 connected to the set terminal and the reset terminal
A flip-flop circuit connected to the output terminal of 0, 49
Is an integrator whose input terminal is connected to the Q output terminal of the flip-flop circuit 48 and whose integrated value is reset by the output signal from the comparator 50. The output terminal of the comparator connected to the terminal is connected to the reset terminal of the flip-flop circuit 48 and the reset terminal of the integrator 49. Reference numeral 51 is a subtracter in which the output terminal of the laser power meter 47 is connected to the input terminal on the side to be subtracted, and a voltage value corresponding to the preset target value laser power value I _LR is applied to the terminal on the side to be subtracted. Then, its output terminal is connected to the other input terminal of the comparator 50.

Next, the operation will be described. FIG. 16 is a graph showing the relationship between the time τ _o from the time when the main switch 8 is turned on to the time when the suppression thyratron 20 is turned on and the laser output level of this embodiment. When the time τ _o becomes smaller, the subsequent current is further suppressed and the laser output increases. But,
If τ _o becomes smaller than necessary, the current i ₁ flowing out from the main capacitor 4 will be limited to the current forming the first peak, and the current i ₂ flowing in the laser discharge tube 7 up to that before laser oscillation will be limited. Will lower it. Therefore,
The laser output level has a characteristic that it exhibits a maximum value at time τ _x with a specific timing delay. If such output characteristics of the laser device are utilized, the delay time τ _o between the operation of the main switch 8 and the suppression thyratron 20 for controlling the laser output level is controlled.
Can be done by In this embodiment, the laser output level is controlled by changing the conduction timing of the suppressing thyratron 20. Here, the case where the point where the time τ _o is larger than the time τ _{x in} FIG. 16 is used as the operating point is described. FIG. 18 shows a time chart of this embodiment. In FIG. 17, the signal repeatedly output from the reference trigger oscillator 147 turns on the main switch 8 of FIG.
It is input to the set input terminal of the flip-flop circuit 48, and the Q output level of the flip-flop circuit 48 is made high. Since the integrator 49 outputs by integrating the Q output level, the output voltage v _tb the reference trigger oscillator 147, the output voltage v _s of the integrator 49 is as shown in Figure 18. The output voltage v _s is the output voltage v _s from the subtractor 51 by the comparator 50.
_If it is compared with _cal and the voltage v _s becomes larger, the comparator 5
The output of 0 becomes 1 and the integrated voltages of the flip-flop circuit 48 and the integrator 49 are reset. Further, the output of the comparator 50 is transmitted to the second grid terminal of the suppressing thyratron 20 via the grid drain 45b, and the suppressing thyratron 20 becomes conductive. Therefore, the suppression thyratron 2
The time τ _o in FIG. 18, which is the conduction timing of 0, depends on the magnitude of the voltage v _cal . For example, if the input from the laser power meter 47 becomes small, the voltage v _cal
Becomes smaller and the time τ _o becomes smaller. When the laser device is used in the operating range larger than the time τ _{x, the} laser output level increases as the time τ _o decreases, so that the decreased laser output level can be compensated and the laser output level can be stabilized. Further, if the input from the laser power meter 47 to the timing controller 46 is increased, the voltage v _cal is increased and the time τ _o is also increased. Therefore, the laser output level is reduced and the laser output is stabilized. In this embodiment describes the operating region at a greater time than the time tau _x, be carried out in less time than the time tau _x, it is the same except that the increase or decrease of the time tau _o is reversed . Further, in this embodiment, the grid transformer 45b is used to control the timing of turning on the suppression thyratron 20, but as shown in the first embodiment,
Even if the reservoir voltage in the auxiliary circuit 22 is changed and the auxiliary circuit 22 is automatically turned on, the same effect can be obtained.

As described above, in the seventh embodiment of the laser apparatus according to the present invention, the operation timing of the suppressing thyratron 20 is changed according to the increase or decrease of the laser output, so that the laser output can be stabilized as a result. .

Example 8. FIG. 19 is a circuit diagram showing the structure of an eighth embodiment of the laser device according to the present invention. In the above-described seventh embodiment, in order to stabilize the laser output, the conduction timing of the suppression thyratron 20 is changed according to the increase or decrease of the laser output. However, if the conduction timing of the suppressing thyratron 20 is changed, the subsequent current is eliminated, and as a result, the input power to the laser discharge tube 7 is also reduced. When the input power to the laser discharge tube 7 is reduced, for example, the temperature of the discharge inner tube 17 in FIG. 36 is lowered, which lowers the temperature of the copper grains 19 and the copper vapor density in the discharge inner tube 17 is lowered. I will end up. As a result, the laser output may decrease. In order to prevent this, by suppressing the subsequent current, it is only necessary to newly compensate for the decrease in the power supplied to the laser discharge tube 7. The eighth embodiment realizes this point.

In FIG. 19, 52 is an integrating resistor having one end connected to the Q output terminal of the flip-flop circuit 48,
Reference numeral 53 is an integrating capacitor having one electrode plate connected to the other end of the integrating resistor 52, and 54 is an adder having one input terminal connected to the connection point of the integrating resistor 52 and the integrating capacitor 53. The target voltage V _{HVR serving as a} reference is applied to the other input terminal of the high voltage power supply 42a.
The collector is connected to the positive side terminal of and the emitter is connected to the base terminal of the transistor 43a connected to the charging reactor 2. Adder 54 and transistor 43a
And the high-voltage power supply 42 a constitute the high-voltage power supply device 1.
In addition, the integration resistor 52, the integration capacitor 53, the adder 5
4 and the transistor 43a constitute a voltage control device that controls the output voltage of the high voltage power supply device 1.

Next, the operation will be described. From the Q output terminal of the flip-flop circuit 48 of the timing controller 46, as described in the seventh embodiment, a signal that is high (logical level 1) for the time τ _o is output. In FIG. 19, the integrating resistor 52 and the integrating capacitor 53 average the output from the flip-flop circuit 48. As a result, the DC voltage Vτ _o proportional to the time τ _o is input to the minus input terminal of the adder 54. The voltage Vτ _o and the target voltage value V _Hvr applied to the plus side input terminal are calculated by the adder 54 and applied to the base terminal of the transistor 43a. As a result, a voltage proportional to the output voltage Vτ _H of the adder 54 is generated at the output terminal of the high voltage power supply device 1. For example, when the time τ _o is small, the subsequent current is suppressed more and the input power is also reduced. At that time, the negative input terminal voltage Vτ _o of the adder 54 decreases and the output voltage Vτ _H of the adder 54 increases. Therefore, the output voltage of the high-voltage power supply device 1 increases, the charging voltage of the main capacitor 4 increases, and as a result, the input power reduced by the subsequent current can be compensated.

As described above, according to the eighth embodiment, the conduction timing of the suppressing thyratron 20 is changed according to the output level of the laser device to stabilize the laser output level and the subsequent current is suppressed. The output of the high-voltage power supply device 1 was changed with time τ _{o in} order to compensate for the reduced power input to the laser discharge tube 7. As a result, the laser output was more stabilized.

Example 9. FIG. 20 is a circuit diagram showing the configuration of Embodiment 9 of the laser apparatus according to the present invention. The ninth embodiment is to stabilize the laser output level in the third to fifth embodiments in which the subsequent current is suppressed by the main switch 8X.
This is to compensate the input power. In the timing controller 46 of the ninth embodiment, the output signal of the flip-flop circuit 48 is used as the control signal for the main switch 8X.

Next, the operation will be described. Time τ _o at which the output signal of the flip-flop circuit 48 is at the logic level 1
As described in the seventh embodiment, increases as the output level of the laser device increases, and decreases as the output level decreases. Therefore, since the main switch 8X is turned on for the time τ _o , the main switch 8X turns off faster when the output level of the laser device decreases, and turns off later when the output level of the laser device increases. This point will be described with reference to FIG. 21. If the output level of the laser device decreases, the time τ
_o becomes shorter (indicated as “τ _o = small” in the figure), the subsequent current is more suppressed and the laser output increases, as indicated by the broken line in the figure. Also, as the output level of the laser device increases, the time τ _o becomes longer (“τ _o = middle” in the figure),
As indicated by the solid line in the figure, the subsequent current increases and the laser output decreases. When the output level of the laser device further increases, the time τ _o becomes longer (indicated as “τ _o = large” in the figure), the subsequent current further increases as shown by the dashed line in the figure, and the output of the laser device increases. Is further reduced. Therefore, the laser output can be stabilized. In the ninth embodiment, the electric power reduced by the subsequent current suppression described in the eighth embodiment is also compensated by increasing the voltage of the high voltage power supply device 1, but the description of the operation is omitted.

As described above, according to this embodiment, the same effect as that obtained in the seventh and eighth embodiments can be obtained, and since the suppressing thyratron 20 is unnecessary, the cost and the size can be reduced. A stable laser device can be obtained.

Example 10. 22 is a circuit diagram showing the configuration of a tenth embodiment of the laser apparatus according to the present invention. In the figure, 55 is a block diode which is connected between the secondary winding of the transformer 56 for additional pulse and the laser discharge tube 7 and blocks a reverse current from flowing through the laser discharge tube 7.
6 is a transformer for an additional pulse, whose secondary winding is connected between both terminals of the laser discharge tube 7 and supplies an additional pulse to the laser discharge tube 7, and (pulse signal application circuit) 57 is a primary of the transformer 56 for the additional pulse. An additional pulse reactor, which is connected to one end of the winding and transmits the additional pulse to the additional pulse transformer 56, (pulse signal application circuit) 58 has one contact connected to one end of the additional pulse reactor 57 and the other contact. Is connected to one electrode of the additional pulse capacitor 59 and supplies the additional pulse to the additional pulse reactor 57 (pulse signal generator).
Reference numeral 59 denotes an additional pulse capacitor, one electrode of which is connected to one contact of the additional pulse switch 58 and the other electrode of which is grounded, for charging the additional pulse voltage, and (pulse signal signal generator) 60 is an input terminal. Is connected to the output terminal of the reference oscillator 61, and the output terminal is an additional pulse switch 5
8 is a trigger delay circuit connected to the operation control terminal 8 for delaying the trigger pulse of the reference oscillator 61 for a predetermined time. The output terminal of the (pulse signal generator) 61 is the trigger delay circuit 60.
Is connected to the input terminal and an operation control terminal of the main switch 8X, a trigger pulse to turn OFF the main switch 8X after a lapse of more than half of the oscillation period of the discharge current i ₁ of the main capacitor 4 After conducting the main switch 8X The reference oscillator 62 to be generated has a reference voltage value I _LR corresponding to the reference output level of the laser device applied to one input terminal thereof, and an output voltage I _L of the laser power meter 47 applied to the other input terminal thereof. Additional pulse control adder that outputs a voltage that is the difference between the output voltage I _L corresponding to the laser output level and the reference voltage value I _LR . (Level control device) 63 has a positive output terminal as the collector of the control transistor 64. A DC power source, which is connected to the terminal and has a negative terminal installed, which supplies a positive constant voltage to the control transistor 64, (level control device) 64
The base terminal is connected to the output terminal of the adder 62 (for additional pulse control), the emitter terminal is connected to the positive electrode of the additional pulse capacitor 59, and the impedance changes according to the laser output level fluctuation of the laser device. It is a transistor (level control device).

Next, the operation will be described. DC power 63
The control transistor 64 charges the additional pulse capacitor 59 with electric charge to generate a voltage between the electrode plates. When a trigger pulse is generated from the reference oscillator 61 to turn off the main switch 8X for a predetermined time after the main switch 8X is turned on, the trigger delay circuit 60 delays the trigger pulse for a predetermined time τ _TX , and the additional pulse switch 58 receives the trigger pulse. When applied, the additional pulse switch 58 becomes conductive. As a result, the electric charge charged in the additional pulse capacitor 59 by that time flows through the additional pulse reactor 57 to the primary winding of the additional pulse transformer 56 as the current i _ad . The induced voltage generated by the current i _{ad in the} primary winding of the additional pulse transformer 56 is boosted by the additional pulse transformer 56 to generate an induced voltage in the secondary winding. The resulting current is rectified by the block diode 55 and the laser It flows into the discharge tube 7. After all, as shown in FIG. 23, in the laser discharge tube 7,
And delayed by a time tau _TX than the discharge current i ₁ and the discharge current i ₁ of the pulse P ₁ form supplied by the main switch 8X,
Pulse P controlled by additional pulse switch 58
_{A two-} shaped current i _ad is supplied. As described above, it is generally known that the laser output changes when the gentle pulse current P ₂ is applied in the middle of the cycle of the main pulse current P ₁ . When the peak value of the pulse current P ₂ is increased,
The pulse current P ₂ preliminarily ionizes the inside of the discharge inner tube 17 of the laser discharge tube 7, and when the main pulse current P ₁ is applied, the laser output level of the laser device becomes high. However, when the peak value of the pulse current P ₂ becomes larger than the value P _x shown in FIG. 24 at which the laser output level of the laser device becomes maximum, the electrons that increase the number of laser lower level particles are pulse current P ₂ The laser output level drops as shown in FIG. 24. The laser apparatus as in order to have a characteristic that the laser output level is changed with respect to the pulse current P _2, it is possible to control the laser output at the peak value of the pulse current P _2.

The output voltage I _L corresponding to the laser output level detected by the laser power meter 47 and the reference voltage value I _LR which is the target value of the laser power are compared and calculated by the adder 62 for additional pulse control, and the difference between them is calculated. Is output to the base of the control transistor 64. As a result, the impedance of the control transistor 64 changes, and the DC power source 63
Changes the value of the current flowing into the additional pulse capacitor 59 from. Therefore, the peak value of the pulse current P ₂ fluctuates in accordance with the fluctuation of the laser output level, and thereby the laser output level of the laser device is controlled to a constant level. In the tenth embodiment shown in FIG. 22, a point on the left side of the value P _{x in} FIG. 24 is selected as the operating point. That is, when the voltage value I _L corresponding to the laser output level decreases, the output voltage of the control transistor 64 increases and the peak value of the pulse current P ₂ increases. As a result, the laser power level increases. On the contrary, when the voltage value I _L becomes smaller, the output voltage of the control transistor 64 becomes smaller and the pulse current P ₂
And the laser output level decreases. As a result, a stable laser output level can be obtained.

In this embodiment, the characteristic value P _x of FIG. 24 is set.
Although the point on the left side is the operating point, selecting the operating point on the right side of the value P _x has the same effect (the increase and decrease of the voltage is opposite).

Example 11. FIG. 25 is a sectional view showing the structure of Embodiment 11 of the laser discharge tube according to the present invention. This embodiment solves the problem of the temperature distribution of the conventional laser discharge tube described above. In the figure, 12 is a cathode in a pair of electrodes for applying a voltage for generating a pulse discharge in the discharge inner tube 17, 13 is a pair of electrodes with the cathode 12, and an anode provided oppositely, 14 is Anode 13
A conductive outer cylinder that is provided in contact with the outer surface of the laser discharge tube 7 to protect the outer surface of the laser discharge tube 7, a window provided on both end surfaces of the laser discharge tube for emitting laser light to the outside, and 16 an outer cylinder 14 The heat insulating material 17 provided inside the heat insulating material for preventing heat from radiating to the outside, 17 is further provided inside the heat insulating material 16, and the copper grain 1
A discharge inner tube for accommodating 9 and causing laser oscillation therein, 18 is an insulating breaker interposed between the cathode 12 and the outer cylinder 14 to electrically insulate the cathode 12 and the outer cylinder 14,
Reference numeral 9 denotes copper particles (metal particles) for generating laser oscillation, 66
Is an electric heater which is arranged around the projecting edges of the cathode 12 and the anode 13 projecting in the laser discharge tube as a heating source.

Next, the operation will be described. 26 is shown in FIG.
6 is a graph showing an example of an axial temperature distribution in the discharge inner tube 17 of the laser discharge tube shown in FIG. Originally, as shown in the solid line graph of FIG. 26 in the internal temperature distribution of the conventional laser discharge tube, the temperature of the end portion of the discharge inner tube 17 becomes lower than that of the central portion, as described above, due to the radiant heat. , Window 15
This is because the heat at the end portion of the discharge inner tube 17 escapes through this. Therefore, if the end portion of the discharge inner tube 17 is compensated for the amount that escapes as radiant heat in another form, the same temperature as in the central portion can be obtained. In this eleventh embodiment, as a heat source for compensation, an electric heater 66 is arranged around the projecting edges of the cathode 12 and the anode 13, which are located in the immediate vicinity of the discharge inner tube 17, in the laser discharge tube interior 7. As a result,
As shown by the dotted line in Fig. 6, the length x ₁ and x ₂ portions that could not be secured as active lengths in the past become hot, and the temperature distribution becomes almost flat, so the length x ₁ portion and the length The length x ₂ portion can also be used as the active length. Therefore, the laser output is significantly increased.

FIG. 27 is a diagram showing an example of a detailed structure around the electrodes. In the figure, 12a is a part of the cathode, and an electric heater 66 is arranged around the cathode 12a.
67 is an introduction terminal attached to the window flange 111 of the window 15; 68a, 68b are filter reactors, one end of which is connected to the lead wire 72 and the other end of which is connected to the anode and cathode of the heater power source 70, and 69a and 69b. A heater filter capacitor having one end connected to the anode and cathode of the heater power supply 70 and the other end grounded, 70 is a heater power supply, 72 is a lead wire for supplying a current to the electric heater 66, and one of the lead wires 72 is It is connected to the cathode 12 a (eventually, the potential is the same as that of the window flange 111, so the outside is electrically connected from the window flange 111), and the other is taken out through the introduction terminal 67 to the outside. Introducing terminal 67
The two leads taken out from the window flange 111 are connected to the heater power source 70 via the filter reactors 68a and 68b and the heater filter capacitors 69a and 69b.
It is connected to the.

Next, the operation will be described. Heater power supply 7
When the voltage of 0 is changed, the heat generation in the electric heater 66 can be controlled, so that the end portion of the inner discharge tube 17 can be easily set to a desired temperature. Noise components superimposed on the power supply voltage are removed by the filter reactors 68a and 68b and the heater filter capacitors 69a and 69b.

FIG. 28 is a diagram showing another structural example of the heating source. This modification uses gas discharge as a heating source. In the figure, 71 is provided around the cathode 12a to generate a gas discharge between the cathode 12a and the cathode 1a.
2a is a heating electrode for heating itself.

Next, the operation will be described. In this modification, since the heating electrode 71 heats the cathode 12a itself, the temperature of the end portion of the inner discharge tube 17 can be freely set to a desired temperature. Further, since a discharge is formed between the heating electrode 71 and the cathode 12a, a large amount of electrons always exist near the cathode 12a. As a result, electrons are easily supplied from the cathode 12a when forming the main pulse discharge having the first peak-shaped waveform of the discharge current, so that the cathode drop voltage of the cathode 12a decreases. As a result, the voltage applied inside the discharge inner tube 17 increases, and the laser pumping ability significantly increases. Although the cathode 12a is described as an example in the drawing of FIG. 28, the same effect can be obtained with the anode 13.

As described above, according to the eleventh embodiment,
Since the heating source is arranged around the electrodes, the temperature distribution of the discharge inner tube 17 can be made uniform and a long active length can be secured.
Laser output and efficiency increase.

Example 12. 29 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration of a twelfth embodiment of the laser apparatus according to the present invention. In the figure, 7 is a laser discharge tube having an inductance 10 and a resistance 11, and an electric heater 66 which is a heating source is arranged around a pair of electrodes, and 101 is an electric heater 66 on the anode side.
The cathode side to the main switch 8 and the main capacitor 4 at one end of the
The bypass diode (supply device) 104 is connected to the connection point of (1), and 104 is a charging reactor whose both ends are connected to both ends of the laser discharge tube 7. The time constant between the electric heater 66 and the main capacitor 4 is set sufficiently large with respect to the current width of the discharge current i ₁ when the main switch 8 is conducted,
Further, the inductance value of the charging reactor 104 is selected so as to exhibit a sufficiently low impedance in the time region of this time constant.

Next, the operation will be described. As described above, in the conventional laser device, the reverse voltage stored in the main capacitor 4 due to the vibration of the circuit is generated by the bypass diode 1
01 and the bypass resistor 102 were consumed, but they were merely generated as heat energy by the bypass diode 101 and the bypass resistor 102 and consumed, so that the power use efficiency of the laser device was reduced. In the twelfth embodiment of the laser device, the reverse voltage generated in the main capacitor 4 is supplied to the electric heater 66 via the bypass diode 101, converted into heat energy by the electric heater 66, and the electric heater 66 is radiated by the laser discharge tube. The end portion of 7 is heated to flatten the temperature distribution in the discharge inner tube 17. This significantly increases the laser output and improves the power utilization efficiency.

FIG. 30 is a circuit diagram showing the configuration of a modification of the laser device of the twelfth embodiment in which the reverse voltage supply path from the main capacitor 4 to the electric heater 66 is different. In this modification, one end of the electric heater 66 is connected to one end of the suppressing thyratron (supply device) 20, and a series circuit of the suppressing thyratron 20 and the electric heater 66 is connected in parallel to the main capacitor 4. ..

Next, the operation will be described. When the suppression thyratron 20 becomes conductive, a current due to the electric charge charged in the main capacitor 4 flows through the suppression thyratron 20 to the electric heater 66 to cause the electric heater 66 to generate heat, so that the temperature distribution inside the laser discharge tube 7 becomes uniform. Becomes As a result, the subsequent current is suppressed, and the suppressed electric power heats the end portion of the laser discharge tube 7 to improve the output level of the laser discharge tube 7, and at the same time, the electric power is effectively used. The efficiency of the laser device is improved.

Example 13 FIG. 31 is a circuit diagram showing the structure of a thirteenth embodiment of the laser device according to the present invention. In the figure, reference numeral 106 indicates that one end of the primary winding is connected to one electrode plate of the peaking capacitor 6 and the other end is connected to one end of the heat source switch 107, and part of the secondary winding is one electrode of the peaking capacitor 6. For a heat source connected between the plate and one end of a part of the electric heater 66, and the other part of the secondary winding connected between the cathode of the backflow prevention diode 31 and the other part of the electric heater 66. The transformer (supply device) 107 is a switch (supply device) for heating source, one end of which is connected to one end of the primary winding of the transformer 106 for heating source and the other end is connected to one electrode plate of the peaking capacitor 6.

Next, the operation will be described. The reverse current blocking diode 31 prevents the current due to the reverse voltage generated in the peaking capacitor 6 due to the circuit vibration from flowing into the laser discharge tube 7. When the heating source switch 107 is turned on in this state, a voltage boosted in the heating source transformer 106 is generated by the reverse voltage generated in the peaking capacitor 6, and the boosted voltage causes a current to flow in the electric heater 66 and the electric heater 66. 66 is heated. As a result, the reverse voltage generated in the peaking capacitor 6 which has not been utilized so far can be utilized for uniforming the temperature distribution in the discharge inner tube 17 in the laser discharge tube 7. Improve the laser output level,
Increase the efficiency of power usage.

In this case, if the main switch 8 is turned off after the lapse of more than half of the oscillation cycle of the discharge current i ₁ from the main capacitor 4, the subsequent current can be suppressed almost completely, and the peaking capacitor can be suppressed. Since the reverse voltage of 6 can be used as the heating source of the electric heater 66, the laser output and the power use efficiency are significantly improved.

Example 14. 32 is a circuit diagram showing the structure of a fourteenth embodiment of the laser apparatus according to the present invention. In the figure, one ends of two electric heaters 66 (charging impedance elements) are connected to the cathode 12 and the anode 13 of the laser discharge tube 7, respectively, and the other ends are connected to both ends of the charging reactor 104.

Next, the operation will be described. In this embodiment, the main capacitor 4 is the charging reactor 2, the charging diode 3, the electric heater 66, and the charging reactor 10.
4 and the inductance 9 of the circuit. That is, the electric heater 66 also functions as the conventional charging resistor 5 shown in FIG. As a result, the high voltage power supply 1
The electric heater 66 is heated when the main capacitor 4 is charged from the charging reactor 104 via the charging reactor 104, and the electric power consumed by the conventional heating resistor 5 is generated.
Since it can be used as a heating source for 6, the temperature distribution in the laser discharge tube 7 can be flattened with an extremely simple configuration.
The laser output level and efficiency can be improved.

FIG. 33 is a circuit diagram showing a structure of a modification of the fourteenth embodiment shown in FIG. In this modification, a reverse current blocking diode 31 is connected between the peaking capacitor 6 and the laser discharge tube 7, and another charging reactor 103 is connected in parallel with the reverse current blocking diode 31.
Are connected.

Next, the operation will be described. In this modification, the main capacitor 4 is the charging reactor 2, the charging diode 3, the electric heater 66, the charging reactor 1.
04, the charging reactor 103 and the inductance 9 of the circuit. The electric heater 66 is heated when the main capacitor 4 is charged, and the electric voltage generated by the reverse voltage generated in the peaking capacitor 6 is applied to the electric heater 6.
6, charging reactor 104 and charging reactor 10
3 is discharged, and the electric heater 66 is also heated at this time. Therefore, a sufficiently high electric power can be supplied as the electric power for heating the electric heater 66, and the efficiency and output of the device are significantly improved.

[0129]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the invention, since the discharge switch for discharging the electric charge charged in the main capacitor is connected in parallel with the main capacitor, the main capacitor is connected by the discharge switch. There is an effect that it is possible to obtain the laser device with improved output efficiency by discharging the electric charge charged in the main capacitor and suppressing unnecessary supply of electric charge from the main capacitor to the laser discharge tube.

According to the invention of claim 2, since the control power supply for controlling the conduction timing of the discharge switch for discharging the electric charge charged in the main capacitor is provided, an expensive conduction timing control circuit becomes unnecessary, There is an effect that a small-sized and inexpensive laser device capable of cutting off the subsequent current after laser oscillation and increasing the laser output can be obtained.

According to the invention of claim 3, a discharge switch for discharging the electric charge charged in the main capacitor is connected in parallel with the main capacitor, and a diode is further provided in the series circuit having the main capacitor, the main switch and the laser discharge tube. Since it is configured to be connected in series, the oscillation of the current generated in the resonance circuit formed by the peaking capacitor and the laser discharge tube is prevented by the diode connected in series to the laser discharge tube. There is an effect that a small and inexpensive laser device that can be almost completely eliminated and that can increase the laser output can be obtained.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, since the control device for turning off the main switch is provided after the oscillation of the current flowing through the series circuit for more than half of the oscillation period after the main switch is turned on, the control device is provided after laser oscillation. The laser output can be increased almost completely by eliminating the subsequent current, and the maximum value of the discharge current can be increased by increasing the capacitance value of the main capacitor, and high laser efficiency can be obtained even at a low power supply voltage. Further, there are effects that the device can be downsized, the cost can be reduced, and the efficiency can be improved.

According to the invention of claim 5, the main capacitor,
A diode is further connected in series to the series circuit having the main switch and the laser discharge tube, and a control device for turning off the main switch after half or more of the oscillation cycle of the current flowing in the series circuit after the main switch is turned on should be provided. The laser output can be increased almost completely by eliminating the subsequent current after laser oscillation, and the capacitance value of the main capacitor can be increased to increase the maximum discharge current value. The laser efficiency can be obtained, and further the device can be downsized, the cost can be reduced, and the efficiency can be improved.

According to the invention of claim 6, the sum of the voltage of the peaking capacitor and the voltage of the main capacitor of the main switch is the sum of the voltage of the peaking capacitor and the voltage of the peaking capacitor when the voltage of the peaking capacitor is maximized. Since the capacitance value is set to the rated voltage or less, the subsequent output current after laser oscillation can be almost completely eliminated to increase the laser output, and the capacitance value of the main capacitor can be increased to maximize the discharge current. The value can be increased, high laser efficiency can be obtained even at low power supply voltage, and the size, cost and efficiency of the device can be reduced, and at the same time the main switch is not damaged by overvoltage. There is an effect that a highly reliable laser device can be obtained.

According to the invention of claim 7, a snubber circuit, in which a snubber capacitor and a snubber diode are connected in series, and a snubber resistor is connected in parallel to the snubber capacitor, is connected in parallel to the main switch. Because I configured
The laser output can be increased by almost completely eliminating the subsequent current after laser oscillation, and the maximum value of the discharge current can be increased by increasing the capacitance value of the main capacitor to obtain high laser efficiency even at low power supply voltage. In addition, the size of the device can be reduced, the cost can be reduced, and the efficiency can be improved. At the same time, the main switch can be prevented from being damaged by overvoltage.
There is an effect that a highly reliable laser device can be obtained.

According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, the pulse circuit having the main capacitor and the main switch and the laser discharge tube are transformer-coupled by the pulse transformer, and the oscillation cycle of the current flowing through the main switch after the main switch is turned on Since the configuration is such that a control device that turns off the main switch after half or more has elapsed, high laser oscillation efficiency can be obtained, and the current that flows after the end of laser oscillation can be almost completely eliminated, thus improving the efficiency of the laser device. There is an effect that a laser device that can be improved and has high reliability can be obtained.

According to the ninth aspect of the present invention, the pulse circuit having the main capacitor and the main switch and the laser discharge tube are transformer-coupled by a pulse transformer, and the diode is connected in series to the secondary windings of the laser discharge tube and the pulse transformer. And a control device for turning off the main switch after more than half of the oscillation cycle of the current flowing through the main switch after the main switch is turned on is provided, so that high laser oscillation efficiency can be obtained and the laser There is an effect that a current flowing after the end of oscillation can be almost completely eliminated, the efficiency of the laser device can be improved, and a highly reliable laser device can be obtained.

According to the tenth aspect of the present invention, a regenerative circuit is provided for returning the voltage charged in the peaking capacitor to the high voltage power supply device or the main capacitor after the voltage of the peaking capacitor is inverted and rises. As a result, a compact, inexpensive, and highly efficient laser device with improved output efficiency can be obtained.Also, it is highly reliable and high laser efficiency can be obtained even at a low power supply voltage. It can be used, and there is an effect that the efficiency of the laser device can be further improved.

According to the eleventh aspect of the present invention, the laser output detecting device for detecting the laser output level of the laser device and the timing for controlling the conduction timing of the discharge switch according to the laser output level detected by the laser output detecting device. Since the control device is provided, the laser output can be made constant by the conduction timing, and a stable high level laser output can be obtained.

According to the twelfth aspect of the invention, since the voltage control device for controlling the output voltage of the high voltage power supply device according to the output signal of the timing control device is provided, the laser output is made constant by the conduction timing. It is possible,
A stable high level laser output can be obtained, and at the same time, the input power to the laser discharge tube can be made constant even if the conduction timing is changed, and a more stable laser output can be obtained.

According to the thirteenth aspect of the present invention, the laser output detecting device for detecting the laser output level of the laser device and the timing for shutting off the main switch are controlled according to the laser output level detected by the laser output detecting device. Since the timing control device is provided, there is an effect that a small-sized, inexpensive and efficient laser device that can obtain a stable output at a high level can be obtained.

According to the fourteenth aspect of the present invention, since the voltage control device for controlling the output voltage of the high voltage power supply device according to the output signal of the timing control device is provided, a high level stable output can be obtained. It is possible to obtain a small, inexpensive and efficient laser device, and even if the timing changes, the output voltage of the high-voltage power supply device changes accordingly and the input power to the laser discharge tube becomes constant. This has the effect of stabilizing the output.

According to the invention of claim 15, a pulse signal generator for generating a pulse signal after a predetermined time has elapsed after the main switch is turned off, a laser output detector for detecting the laser output level of the laser device, and a laser output. Since the level control device for controlling the level of the pulse signal according to the level and the pulse signal application circuit for applying the level-controlled pulse signal to the laser discharge tube are provided, the laser output is large and the laser efficiency is high. It is possible to obtain a high-performance, compact, low-cost, high-efficiency laser device, and at the same time, to control the laser output level by preliminarily ionizing the laser discharge tube, and to obtain a stable laser device with little output level fluctuation. It is effective.

According to the sixteenth aspect of the invention, since the heating source is arranged around at least a pair of electrodes for generating the pulse discharge in the discharge inner tube, the temperature of the end portion in the discharge inner tube is increased. Thus, the temperature distribution in the discharge inner tube can be made uniform, the effective region of laser oscillation can be expanded, and the laser output and laser efficiency of the laser discharge tube can be increased.

According to the seventeenth aspect of the invention, since the heating electrode for generating the gas discharge is provided as the heating source between the electrode and the electrode, the laser output and the laser efficiency of the laser discharge tube can be increased. In addition, the voltage drop in the vicinity of the electrodes of the laser discharge tube can be reduced, a high voltage can be applied to the laser effective region, and the laser output and laser efficiency of the laser discharge tube can be further increased. .

According to the eighteenth aspect of the invention, since the heating source provided around the electrode of the laser discharge tube is provided with the supply device for supplying a part of the energy charged in the main capacitor, the energy is effectively supplied. Therefore, there is an effect that a laser device having high output and high efficiency can be obtained.

According to the nineteenth aspect of the present invention, the heating source provided around the electrode of the laser discharge tube is provided with the supply device for supplying a part of the energy charged in the peaking capacitor. Therefore, there is an effect that a laser device having high output and high efficiency can be obtained.

According to the twentieth aspect of the invention, the charging impedance element for charging the main capacitor with the electric power of the high voltage power source is arranged as a heating source around the electrodes of the laser discharge tube. There is an effect that the heat generated in the element can be effectively used without waste and a laser device having a high output, high efficiency and a simple structure can be obtained.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration of a laser device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration of an auxiliary circuit of the laser device of the embodiment shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a waveform diagram showing the operation of the first embodiment shown in FIG.

FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration of a second embodiment of the laser device of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a waveform diagram showing the operation of the second embodiment shown in FIG.

FIG. 6 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration of a third embodiment of a laser device of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a waveform diagram showing an operation of the third embodiment shown in FIG.

FIG. 8 is a waveform chart showing the operation of the third embodiment shown in FIG.

FIG. 9 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration of a fourth embodiment of a laser device of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a waveform chart showing an operation of the fourth embodiment shown in FIG.

FIG. 11 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration of a fifth embodiment of the laser apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration of a sixth embodiment of the laser apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration of a high voltage power supply device of embodiment 6 shown in FIG.

FIG. 14 is a waveform chart showing the operation of the sixth embodiment shown in FIG.

FIG. 15 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration of a seventh embodiment of a laser device of the present invention.

16 is a waveform chart showing the operation of the embodiment 7 shown in FIG.

FIG. 17 is a circuit diagram showing the configuration of the timing controller of the seventh embodiment shown in FIG.

FIG. 18 is a time chart of the seventh embodiment shown in FIG.

FIG. 19 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration of an eighth embodiment of the laser device of the present invention.

FIG. 20 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration of a ninth embodiment of the laser device according to the present invention.

FIG. 21 is a waveform chart showing the operation of the ninth embodiment shown in FIG.

FIG. 22 is a circuit diagram showing the structure of a tenth embodiment of the laser device of the present invention.

FIG. 23 is a waveform chart showing the operation of the embodiment 10 of FIG. 22.

FIG. 24 is a graph showing the relationship between the peak value of the additional pulse and the laser output of Example 10 of FIG.

FIG. 25 is a sectional view showing the structure of an eleventh embodiment of the laser discharge tube of the present invention.

26 is a graph showing an example of axial temperature distribution in the discharge inner tube of Example 11 in FIG. 25. FIG.

FIG. 27 is a diagram showing an example of a detailed configuration around electrodes in Example 11 of FIG. 25.

FIG. 28 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of a modified example of the heating source of Example 11 of FIG. 25.

FIG. 29 is a circuit diagram showing the configuration of a twelfth embodiment of the laser device according to the present invention.

30 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration of a modified example of the twelfth embodiment of FIG. 29. FIG.

FIG. 31 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration of a thirteenth embodiment of the laser device according to the present invention.

FIG. 32 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration of a fourteenth embodiment of the laser device according to the present invention.

FIG. 33 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration of a modified example of the fourteenth embodiment shown in FIG. 32.

FIG. 34 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration of an example of a conventional laser device.

35 is a waveform chart showing the operation of the conventional example of FIG. 34.

FIG. 36 (a) is a sectional view showing the structure of an example of a conventional laser discharge tube. (B) It is a graph which shows an example of the temperature distribution of the axial direction of the discharge inner tube of a prior art example.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 High Voltage Power Supply Device 4 Main Capacitor 6 Peaking Capacitor 7 Laser Discharge Tube 8, 8X Main Switch 12 Cathode (pair of electrodes) 13 Anode (pair of electrodes) 15 Window 16 Heat Insulation Material 17 Discharge Inner Tube 19 Copper Grain (Metal Grain) 20 Suppression thyratron (discharge switch, supply device) 26 Reservoir power supply (control power supply) 31 Reverse current blocking diode (diode) 33 Snubber diode 34 Snubber capacitor 35 Snubber resistor 36 Pulse transformer 37 Regeneration transformer (regeneration circuit) 38 Saturable reactor (Regeneration circuit) 39 Return diode (regeneration circuit) 40 Regeneration inductance (regeneration circuit) 41 Regeneration diode (regeneration circuit) 46 Timing controller (timing control device) 47 Laser power meter (laser output detection device) 52 Integrating resistor (voltage control) 53) integration capacitor (voltage controller) 54 adder (voltage controller) 43a transistor (voltage controller) 56 transformer for additional pulse (pulse signal application circuit) 57 reactor for additional pulse (pulse signal application circuit) 58 additional pulse Switch (pulse signal generator) 59 additional pulse capacitor (pulse signal generator) 60 trigger delay circuit (pulse signal generator) 62 additional pulse control adder (level control device) 63 DC power supply (level control device) 64 Control transistor (level control device) 66 Electric heater (heating source, impedance element for charging) 71 Heating electrode 101 Bypass diode (supply device) 106 Transformer for heating source (supply device) 107 Switch for heating source (supply device)

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (72) Inventor Hiroyuki Masuda 8-1-1 Tsukaguchihonmachi, Amagasaki City Mitsubishi Electric Co., Ltd. Itami Works (72) Inventor Isa Tanaga 6-16-1 Tsukaguchihonmachi, Amagasaki Mitsubishi Electric Engineering Co., Ltd. Itami Works

Claims (20)

[Claims] 1. A high-voltage power supply device, a main capacitor charged by the high-voltage power supply device, a laser discharge tube that discharges by a discharge current from the main capacitor, and a series connection to the laser discharge tube and the main capacitor. A main switch that supplies a discharge current of the main capacitor to the laser discharge tube, and a peaking capacitor that is connected in parallel to the laser discharge tube and that sharpens the waveform of the discharge current. A laser device in which a discharge switch for discharging the electric charge charged in the main capacitor is connected in parallel to the main capacitor. 2. The laser device according to claim 1, further comprising a control power supply for controlling a conduction timing of the discharge switch. 3. The laser device according to claim 1, further comprising a diode connected in series to the series circuit having the main capacitor, the main switch and the laser discharge tube. 4. A high-voltage power supply device, a main capacitor charged by the high-voltage power supply device, a laser discharge tube that discharges by a discharge current from the main capacitor, and a series connection to the laser discharge tube and the main capacitor. A main switch for supplying a discharge current of the main capacitor to the laser discharge tube, and a peaking capacitor connected in parallel to the laser discharge tube for sharpening the waveform of the discharge current, wherein the main switch comprises: The laser device is provided with a control device for turning off the main switch after a lapse of more than half of the oscillation period of the current flowing through the series circuit after the conduction of the above. 5. The laser device according to claim 4, wherein a diode is further connected in series to the series circuit having the main capacitor, the main switch and the laser discharge tube. 6. The sum of the voltage of the peaking capacitor and the voltage of the main capacitor is equal to or less than the rated voltage of the main switch when the capacity value of the main capacitor reaches a maximum by reversing the voltage of the peaking capacitor. The laser device according to claim 4, wherein the laser device has a capacitance value of 7. A snubber capacitor and a snubber diode are connected in series, and a snubber resistor is connected in parallel with the snubber capacitor so that the voltage applied across the main switch is below a predetermined voltage value. A holding snubber circuit is connected in parallel to the main switch.
Alternatively, the laser device according to item 5. 8. A high voltage power supply device, a main capacitor charged by the high voltage power supply device, a main switch for discharging a discharge current of the main capacitor, and a primary winding connected in series to the main switch and the main capacitor. Pulse transformer, a laser discharge tube that discharges by a voltage induced in the secondary winding of the pulse transformer, and a parallel connection to the primary winding or the secondary winding of the pulse transformer, the discharge current or the A peaking capacitor that sharpens the waveform of the voltage induced in the secondary winding of the pulse transformer, and turns off the main switch after half or more of the oscillation cycle of the current flowing through the main switch has passed after the main switch was turned on. A laser device comprising a control device. 9. The laser device according to claim 8, wherein a diode is connected in series to the secondary winding of the laser discharge tube and the pulse transformer. 10. A regenerative circuit for returning the voltage charged in the peaking capacitor to the high-voltage power supply device or the main capacitor after a time when the voltage of the peaking capacitor is inverted and rises. The laser device according to any one of 1 to 9. 11. A laser output detection device for detecting a laser output level, and a timing control device for controlling the conduction timing of the discharge switch according to the laser output level detected by the laser output detection device. The laser device according to claim 1. 12. The laser device according to claim 11, further comprising a voltage control device for controlling an output voltage of the high-voltage power supply device in accordance with an output signal of the timing control device. 13. A high-voltage power supply device, a main capacitor charged by the high-voltage power supply device, a laser discharge tube that discharges by a discharge current from the main capacitor, and a serial connection to the laser discharge tube and the main capacitor. A laser device having a main switch for supplying the discharge current of the main capacitor to the laser discharge tube and a peaking capacitor connected in parallel to the laser discharge tube for sharpening the waveform of the discharge current. A laser output detection device for detecting the laser output level of the laser and a timing control device for controlling the timing of shutting off the main switch according to the laser output level detected by the laser output detection device. apparatus. 14. The laser device according to claim 13, further comprising a voltage control device for controlling an output voltage of the high-voltage power supply device according to an output signal of the timing control device. 15. A pulse signal generator for generating a pulse signal a predetermined time after the main switch is turned off, a laser output detector 47 for detecting a laser output level of the laser device, and a laser output detector for the laser output detector. A level control device that controls the level of the pulse signal according to the detected laser output level; and a pulse signal application circuit that applies a pulse signal whose level is controlled by the level control device to the laser discharge tube. The laser device according to claim 4, wherein the laser device is a laser device. 16. A metal particle, a discharge inner tube containing the metal particle inside, at least a pair of electrodes for generating a pulse discharge in the discharge inner tube, and a heat insulating member arranged around the discharge inner tube. In a laser discharge tube having a material and a window for emitting a laser beam excited by a pulse discharge generated in the discharge inner tube to the outside, a laser source characterized by disposing a heating source around the electrode. tube. 17. The laser discharge tube according to claim 16, wherein a heating electrode for generating a gas discharge is provided between the heating source and the electrode. 18. A metal particle, a discharge inner tube containing the metal particle inside, at least a pair of electrodes for generating a pulse discharge in the discharge inner tube, and heat insulation disposed around the discharge inner tube. Material, a laser discharge tube having a window for emitting a laser beam excited by a pulse discharge generated in the discharge inner tube to the outside, a high-voltage power supply device, and charged by the high-voltage power supply device, the discharge current at the A main capacitor that discharges the laser discharge tube; a main switch that supplies the discharge current of the main capacitor to the laser discharge tube; and a peaking capacitor that is connected in parallel to the laser discharge tube and that sharpens the waveform of the discharge current. In a laser device including a heating device, a heating source is provided around the electrode of the laser discharge tube, and a part of the energy charged in the main capacitor is supplied to the heating source. A laser device characterized in that a laser device is provided. 19. A metal particle, a discharge inner tube containing the metal particle inside, at least a pair of electrodes for generating a pulse discharge in the discharge inner tube, and heat insulation disposed around the discharge inner tube. Material, a laser discharge tube having a window for emitting a laser beam excited by a pulse discharge generated in the discharge inner tube to the outside, a high-voltage power supply device, and charged by the high-voltage power supply device, the discharge current at the A main capacitor that discharges the laser discharge tube; a main switch that supplies the discharge current of the main capacitor to the laser discharge tube; and a peaking capacitor that is connected in parallel to the laser discharge tube and that sharpens the waveform of the discharge current. In the laser device including, a heating source is arranged around the electrode of the laser discharge tube, and a part of the energy charged in the peaking capacitor is supplied to the heating source. A laser device characterized in that a supply device is provided. 20. Metal particles, a discharge inner tube containing the metal particles inside, at least a pair of electrodes for generating a pulse discharge in the discharge inner tube, and heat insulation provided around the discharge inner tube. Material, a laser discharge tube having a window for emitting a laser beam excited by a pulse discharge generated in the discharge inner tube to the outside, a high-voltage power supply device, and charged by the high-voltage power supply device, the discharge current at the A main capacitor for discharging a laser discharge tube, a charging impedance element for charging the main capacitor with electric power of the high-voltage power supply, a main switch for supplying a discharge current of the main capacitor to the laser discharge tube, and the laser discharge tube In parallel with the peaking capacitor for sharpening the waveform of the discharge current, and heating the impedance element around the electrode. A laser device characterized by being provided as a source.