EMULSION DYE-LASER

A laser dye which is insoluble in water has been dissolved in hexane and emulsified in a water matrix. When pumped with a nitrogen laser, this mixture was observed to lase. The emulsion is superior to a simple hexane solution because the excellent thermo-optical properties of the water matrix help prevent refractive-index gradients from degrading laser performance. This is a useful characteristic for flash-pumped dye lasers, laser-pumped dye lasers, and liquid filters. Another type of solvent system, a critical solution, is also discussed. For certain dyes, a critical solution has even better thermo-optical properties because of its ability to absorb heat as it undergoes a liquid-liquid phase transition.