Questions on Gas Lasers

1. What is a gas and how is it different from a vapor? Give examples for each.
2. What types of transitions lead to laser light emission in gas lasers?
3. How are typical gas lasers pumped?
4. Explain the role of helium and neon atoms in the laser transitions for a He-Ne laser.
5. Do helium and neon atoms react and bond to form a molecule? If not, why?
6. What is the most common output wavelength (and color) of He-Ne lasers? What other colors can they lase at? What was the wavelength of the first operating He-Ne?
7. What is the role of the ballast in gas lasers?
8. What is the output of a typical He-Ne laser? Its typical physical size?
9. How is a tunable argon-ion laser made to produce different color laser light? 
10. In what ways are the argon-ion lasers different from the He-Ne?
11. Why are the ion lasers popular for use in laser light shows?
12. What is carbon-dioxide? 
13. How do carbon-dioxide lasers operate? How are they pumped, what transitions in them lead to lasing, and what type of optical cavity is used for their operation?
14. What is the medium in an excimer laser?
15. How is the operation of excimer lasers different from other gas lasers?
16. What are some of the advantages of excimer lasers? What are some of their disadvantages?
17. What is a chemical laser? Give an example of one and explain how it is different from other gas lasers.
18. What is MIRACL? How does it operate? What is it used for?