A
gas laser which makes use of electronic, vibrational or rotational energy levels in molecules.
The molecules can be excited by an electric discharge, as in the case of the
N2 or
CO2laser, by chemical reactions, as in the
HF
or
DF
lasers, or by another
laser, as in the
CH3F
far IR
laser.
Source:
PAC, 1995, 67, 1913
(Nomenclature, symbols, units, and their usage in spectrochemical analysis-XV. Laser-based
molecular spectroscopy for chemical analysis - laser fundamentals (IUPAC Recommendations
1995))
on page 1920