LASER-BEAM COMBINING IN POTASSIUM VAPOR

We have investigated energy transfer between two laser beams of comparable intensity due to their nonlinear interaction in an atomic vapor. Strong coupling occurs due stimulated Rayleigh scattering when the frequencies of the two waves differ by the inverse of the excited-state lifetime. We have measured the energy transfer between two nearly-equal pulses from an alexandrite laser tuned near the 4(2)S1/2 --> 4(2)P3/2 transition of potassium vapor. As much as 85% of the total incident energy was contained in one of the output beams.