title: Reverse-wave suppressor mirror effects on cw HF unstable ring laser performance.
abstract: The effect of a reverse-wave suppressor (RWS) mirror on the performance of a multiline cw HF ring laser was measured and theoretically discussed. Forward-wave far-field brightness was found to be very sensitive to the tilt of a conventional RWS mirror, being reduced by a factor of 2 for a 200-microrad RWS tilt. An aberrated mirror was found to reduce this tilt sensitivity by nearly an order of magnitude. Also discussed is a possible mechanism whereby the tilt of the conventional RWS mirror reinforced a higher-order mode in the forward-wave output, yet the tilt of the aberrated mirror did not.
authors.affiliation: Aerospace Corporation, Aerophysics Laboratory, P.O. Box 92957, Los Angeles, California 90009, USA.
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Bernard
authors.forename: R A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Chodzko
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Mirels