Abstract:
A laser includes a deformable tube holding an electrode assembly that includes conformable spacers. The spacers are deformed by compression of the tube into good surface contact with the electrodes and the tube walls, thereby providing the necessary path for heat removal from the plasma in order to maintain the required operating temperature for adequate performance of the laser.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    This invention relates to systems and apparatus for cooling a lasing medium in gas lasers.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    Gas temperature is one of the main factors in determining the output power obtainable from a gas laser. Therefore, management of the heat generated during laser operation is critical to overall performance. In sealed off, RF excited carbon dioxide lasers, for example, electrodes are used to excite the gas plasma. These electrodes are traditionally made from metal such as aluminum and are spaced apart so as to form a gap therebetween in which the gas is excited to form the plasma. The metal electrodes are consequently in contact with the plasma and conduct heat from the plasma in an efficient manner. This heat must then be removed from the electrodes in order to maintain a desired operating temperature.  
           [0003]    Cooling the electrodes can be accomplished by several methods. One method is to directly pump liquid through the electrodes. Another method is to conduct the heat from the electrodes through the walls of the tube and then dissipate the heat outside of the tube, for example by air cooling or liquid cooling. Each method has its advantages and disadvantages.  
           [0004]    Thus, liquid cooling of the electrodes using the first method is the most efficient method, but it requires complicated seals and additional passageways to direct the liquid into and out of the sealed tube. The electrodes tend to be more complicated as well, in order to accommodate the liquid cooling.  
           [0005]    Conducting the heat from the electrodes through the walls of the tube using the second method is usually less complicated and expensive. However, this approach requires that the heat be transferred through a layer of dielectric material surrounding the electrodes, because the electrodes are under electric potential and cannot therefore be in direct contact with the walls of the tube. This reduces the heat transfer efficiency.  
           [0006]    Because of its lesser cost, the second method is the preferred approach for lower cost lasers.  
           [0007]    Low power lasers can employ a small gap between the electrodes and the walls of the tubes. This gap, which is occupied by the laser gas mixture, serves the same function as a layer of dielectric material in electrically insulating the electrodes, while the gas transfers the heat across the gap. However, as power increases, the heat load increases and this method becomes impractical due to the poor thermal conductivity of gases.  
           [0008]    For high power lasers, solid dielectric materials with good thermal conductivity, such as alumina ceramic, are employed. The dielectric material is sandwiched between each electrode and the walls of the tube. One example of a conventional laser with such a heat transfer system is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,198,758, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.  
           [0009]    An improved construction is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,661,746, which illustrates in FIGS. 13-15 therein the use of anodized aluminum (aluminum oxide coated) spacers to insulate the electrodes from the walls of the tube while maintaining good thermal conductivity.  
           [0010]    However, there have been a number of difficulties that need to be overcome when implementing a design using solid dielectric insulators to conduct heat from the electrodes.  
           [0011]    First, all of the components, including the electrodes, tube walls and the dielectric layers, have had smooth, flat surfaces in order to maximize contact between the components for optimal heat transfer. Tubes for sealed gas lasers are usually extruded, and extrusions tend to have a certain amount of surface distortion, making it difficult to obtain flat internal surfaces. Electrodes are also sometimes extruded, leading to the same problem. Machining the electrodes to obtain flat surfaces is expensive, and machining the inside surfaces of the walls of the tubes is very difficult.  
           [0012]    Because the tube walls cannot easily be machined flat, they must be made thin, so that they will deform when the tube is compressed against the assembly of dielectric material and electrodes in order to optimize the contact area. When all or most of the walls are thin, the tube is mechanically weak, which can cause the resonator optical elements to come out of alignment if the resonator optical elements are attached directly to the tube.  
           [0013]    In addition, dielectric materials tend to be brittle and are liable to crack when deformed. As a result, in order to compensate for the lack of flat, smooth surfaces and to prevent the dielectric material from cracking under pressure, many smaller pieces of dielectric material have been used instead of fewer larger pieces, but this leads to complexity in assembly and added cost.  
           [0014]    One further problem arises from the fact that the electrodes and dielectrics must be held in place in the tube to prevent the electrodes from making contact with the walls of the tube. Pockets can be machined into the electrodes to contain the dielectric material, but it is difficult to machine pockets on the inner walls of the tube. Consequently, other methods must be employed to prevent the electrodes from shifting laterally and touching the walls.  
           [0015]    In an attempt to address some of these problems, it has been proposed to make the laser tube that holds the electrodes deformable. Two designs for deformable laser tubes are known, but while each one addresses the problem of providing surface contact for satisfactory heat transfer, each still has drawbacks that need to be overcome.  
           [0016]    The first design is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,787,090, which proposes an extruded tube ( 11  in FIG. 1 of the patent) with a U-shaped structure ( 20 ,  21  and  22  in FIG. 1) on one wall connected to the rest of the tube by thin walls ( 18  and  19  in FIG. 1). The thin walls allow the tube to deform, bringing the U-shaped structure into contact with the electrode assembly. To achieve this, the electrode assembly is inserted into the tube and then a separate part or top ( 31  in FIG. 2 of the patent) is bolted to the tube in such a way that it applies force to the deformable thin walls of the tube, compressing the electrode assembly to provide surface contact for heat transfer.  
           [0017]    This design has a number of drawbacks. First, the design is complicated by the fact that the provision for compressing the tube is not built into the tube itself, but rather requires the separate top  31  to be attached to the tube.  
           [0018]    Another drawback is that the electrode assembly is compressed by vertical members ( 20  and  21  in FIG. 1), which contact only a small portion of one face of the electrode assembly. The intermediate portion of the tube wall ( 22  in FIG. 1) does not contact the electrode assembly. However, on the opposite face of the electrode assembly, the tube wall ( 15  in FIG. 1) contacts the entire facing surface of the electrode assembly. This results in asymmetrical cooling that can cause the tube to deform, which can affect beam quality and resonator alignment if the optical elements are mounted directly to the tube.  
           [0019]    The second design for a deformable tube is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,195,379, which proposes a rectangular extruded tube ( 44  in FIG. 10 of the patent) with thin walls squeezing the electrode assembly and providing the compressive force for surface contact to facilitate heat transfer.  
           [0020]    This second design also suffers from drawbacks. The extruded tube does not provide a means for capturing the electrode assembly and preventing it from shifting laterally other than the friction from the compressive force. Friction is not a reliable means to laterally locate the electrodes in the tube and keep them aligned with the optics, or to prevent them from contacting the walls of the tube and causing an electrical short circuit.  
           [0021]    This design also relies on the elastic deformation, temper and material strength of the tube to compress the electrode assembly. This restricts the materials from which the tube can be manufactured.  
           [0022]    As mentioned earlier, the inside dimensions of the tube in its relaxed state must be smaller than the electrode assembly for this design to work. However, if the walls of the tube were straight when in their relaxed state, they would have a natural tendency to form an arch when compressed around the electrode assembly, making good surface contact difficult to maintain. To compensate for this, the tube walls must be fabricated with a predetermined inward curve in their relaxed state in order that they rest flat against the electrode assembly. This makes manufacturing the tube more complicated and expensive, and control of this curvature is difficult to maintain using an extrusion process.  
           [0023]    It is noted that gas lasers are usually filled to a pressure significantly less than atmospheric pressure. Yet another drawback arises from the fact that this second design relies on the difference in pressure between the atmosphere and the gas mixture and the resulting compressive force on the tube walls to help squeeze the electrode assembly. However, this means that laser performance depends on the outside atmospheric pressure. Accordingly, the laser may not be suitable for high altitude or space applications.  
           [0024]    This design also requires that both sides of the tube deform, making it difficult to maintain accurate registration between the resonator optical elements if attached to the ends of the tube and the electrode assembly inside.  
           [0025]    Finally, special tooling is required to assemble the tube.  
           [0026]    Accordingly, there remains a need for a laser structure that enables efficient and symmetric heat transfer, reliable construction and efficient manufacturing techniques.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0027]    It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a laser with a heat transfer system that avoids the above-described difficulties of the prior art.  
           [0028]    The above and other objects are achieved by the present invention which, in one embodiment, is directed to a laser comprising a housing having a housing cavity therein, first and second electrodes in the housing cavity defining a lasing volume therebetween, and a lasing medium in the lasing volume. The laser further comprises at least one heat conducting, electrically insulating spacer in the housing cavity including a first spacer and at least one conformable spacer in the housing cavity including a second spacer, the first and second spacers being positioned in the housing cavity to separate the first electrode from the housing.  
           [0029]    As a result of this structure, during operation of the laser, heat is conducted from the lasing medium through the first electrode and the first and second spacers to the housing cavity to maintain an acceptable operating temperature of the lasing medium.  
           [0030]    Advantageously, another heat conducting and electrically insulating spacer may be provided to sandwich the conformable spacer between the two insulating spacers.  
           [0031]    Each of the conformable spacers is advantageously deformable upon compression of the housing to bring its surfaces into contact with adjacent surfaces, so that, for example, the conformable spacer is deformed to bring one of its surfaces into contact with the insulating spacer and an opposing surface into contact with the housing.  
           [0032]    A corresponding arrangement of spacers may be advantageously provided for the second electrode.  
           [0033]    The present invention is also directed towards methods for making the lasers.  
           [0034]    These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments taken in conjunction with the following drawings, wherein like reference numerals denote like elements. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0035]    [0035]FIG. 1 is an exploded view of the components of a laser with a heat transfer system in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0036]    [0036]FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the laser of FIG. 1, taken along line A-A.  
         [0037]    [0037]FIG. 3 is the same cross-sectional view of the laser as FIG. 2, with different reference numerals, illustrating the laser in an uncompressed state.  
         [0038]    [0038]FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of an end of the laser of FIG. 1, taken perpendicular to the view of FIG. 2, illustrating the laser in the uncompressed state.  
         [0039]    [0039]FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the laser corresponding to FIG. 3, illustrating the laser in a compressed state.  
         [0040]    [0040]FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the laser corresponding to FIG. 4, illustrating the laser in the compressed state.  
         [0041]    [0041]FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the laser of FIG. 1 illustrating the vertical arrangement of the electrodes and spacers.  
         [0042]    [0042]FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of another laser in accordance with the present invention illustrating an alternative vertical arrangement of electrodes and spacers.  
         [0043]    [0043]FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of still another laser in accordance with the present invention illustrating a second alternative vertical arrangement of electrodes and spacers. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0044]    In accordance with advantageous aspects of the present invention, a preferred embodiment thereof is found in a laser tube and electrode assembly for a sealed, RF excited, carbon dioxide laser with an integrated heat transfer system. The components of this laser  100  are shown in exploded form in FIG. 1 and in cross-section in FIG. 2. FIG. 2 represents the laser  100  in an “uncompressed” state, after the electrode assembly has been inserted into the tube but before the tube is compressed onto the electrode assembly, as will be described below.  
         [0045]    The electrode assembly  101  includes first and second metal electrodes  2 ,  2 ′. Electrode  2  has an interior surface  11  and an exterior surface  12 , with pockets  2 B formed in the exterior surface  12 . Disks  6 , advantageously made from a dielectric material, are placed in the pockets  2 B and extend slightly above the exterior surface  12 . The dielectric material of the disks  6  has a thermal conductivity greater than that of the intended lasing medium. This dielectric material may be, for example, a ceramic. As will be understood from the description below, the disks  6  in combination function as a heat conducting, electrically insulating spacer that is positioned, in combination with a conformable spacer described below, to separate the first electrode  2  from the laser housing, which in this embodiment is the tube.  
         [0046]    Electrode  2  also has a longitudinal groove  2 A machined in its interior surface  11 , centered in and running at least most of the length of the electrode  2 .  
         [0047]    Correspondingly, electrode  2 ′ has an interior surface  11 ′ and an exterior surface  12 ′, with pockets  2 B′ (see FIG. 2) formed in the exterior surface  12 ′. Additional disks  6  made from the dielectric material are placed in the pockets  2 B′ and extend slightly above the exterior surface  12 ′. The disks  6 ′ in combination function as another heat conducting, electrically insulating spacer that is positioned, in combination with a conformable spacer described below, to separate the second electrode  2 ′ from the laser housing.  
         [0048]    It will be understood that in other embodiments in accordance with the present invention, unitary heat conducting, electrically insulating spacers may be used in place of the multiple disks  6  or  6 ″.  
         [0049]    The electrodes  2 ,  2 ′ are spaced apart using dielectric spacers  4  to electrically isolate them from each other and to form a gap  10  between them at the groove  2 A. As shown in FIG. 1, the spacers  4  may advantageously be spheres that fit almost entirely into corresponding opposing depressions in the interior surfaces  11 ,  11 ′. Accordingly, there is a narrower gap  27  between the electrodes  2 ,  2 ′ outside of the groove  2 A.  
         [0050]    In accordance with an advantageous feature of the present invention, a deformable metal spacer  3  having an interior surface  28  with pockets  3 A (see FIG. 2) is placed over the dielectric disks  6  on the electrode  2 , so that each disk  6  is held between a pocket  2 B on the electrode  2  and a pocket  3 A on the spacer  3 . As shown in FIG. 2, the disks  6  are sized so that in the uncompressed state the interior surface  28  of the spacer  3  is initially held with a small gap  13  from the exterior surface  12  of the electrode  2 . The spacer  3  further has an exterior surface  14  with flanges  3 B running the length of the spacer  3  and projecting outwardly from the exterior surface  14 .  
         [0051]    Correspondingly, a deformable metal spacer  3 ′ having an interior surface  28 ′ with pockets  3 A′ is placed over the dielectric disks  6  on the electrode  2 ′, so that each disk  6  is held between a pocket  2 B′ on the electrode  2 ′ and a pocket  3 A′ on the spacer  3 ′. As shown in FIG. 2, the disks  6  are sized so that the interior surface  28 ′ of the spacer  3 ′ is initially held with a small gap  13 ′ from the exterior surface  12 ′ of the electrode  2 ′. The spacer  3 ′ further has an exterior surface  14 ′ (see FIG. 1) with flanges  3 B′ running the length of the spacer  3 ′ and projecting outwardly from the exterior surface  14 ′.  
         [0052]    The above-described elements are formed into a vertical electrode assembly  101 , from spacer  3  on top to spacer  3 ′ on the bottom, in the order shown in FIG. 1. To assemble the laser  100 , this assembly  101  is inserted into an extruded metal tube  1 , advantageously formed of a metal alloy, which serves as the housing of the laser  100 . The tube  1  is generally rectangular in cross-section, with an upper wall  15 , a lower wall  16  and left and right side walls  17 ,  18  defining a housing cavity  19  therein that is sized to contain the electrode assembly  101 . During operation, the lasing medium fills the cavity  19 , and in particular the gap  10  between the electrodes  2 ,  2 ′. Heat sinks  34  are provided at the upper and lower walls  15 ,  16  for disposing of the heat conveyed thereto in accordance with the present invention. The structure of tube  1  will be explained in more detail with reference to FIG. 3, which is identical to FIG. 2 except for the addition of certain reference numerals and the deletion of certain others.  
         [0053]    As shown in FIG. 3, the upper wall  15  of the tube  1  is a symmetrical composite of a number of wall portions. These include left and right outer flanges  1 D with central wall portion  1 C therebetween. The central wall portion  1 C has an interior surface  20  and is made thick enough to provide sufficient rigidity under stress to provide even pressure on the facing spacer  3  when the tube  1  is in its compressed state, as described below.  
         [0054]    The flanges  1 D are thinner than the central wall portion  1 C, but still thick enough to provide mechanical strength and stability. In accordance with an advantageous aspect of the present invention, a second outer flange is provided in the form of a thin wall  1 B underneath each flange  1 D with a gap  21  therebetween. Advantageously, each flange  1 D and its partner thin wall  1 B may be manufactured by extruding the upper wall  15  with thick outer extensions and then machining the gap  21  to create the two elements.  
         [0055]    Screw holes  22  and  23  are made at intervals along the length of the tube  1  in the flanges  1 D and the side walls  17 ,  18 , respectively, in order to accommodate screws  8  for compressing the tube  1 .  
         [0056]    The lower wall  16  is substantially identical to the upper wall  15  except that no gap is machined in the left and right outer extensions  24  to create flanges/thin walls, and no screw holes are made. The central wall portion  25  of the lower wall  16  has an interior surface  26  and is made thick enough to provide sufficient rigidity under stress to provide even pressure on the facing spacer  3 ′ when the tube  1  is in its compressed state.  
         [0057]    Between each thin wall  1 B and the central wall portion  1 C, the upper wall  15  forms two grooves  1 A that respectively align with the flanges  3 B on the spacer  3  when the electrode assembly  101  is inserted in the tube  1 . The lower wall  16  correspondingly has two grooves  1 A′ on either side of the central wall portion  25  that respectively align with the flanges  3 B′ on the spacer  3 ′.  
         [0058]    The groove/flange combination serves to properly locate the electrode assembly  101  in the tube  1 . Specifically, the electrode assembly  101  is prevented by the groove/flange combination from shifting laterally, so that the electrode assembly  101  will remain aligned with optics at the ends of the tube and will not come into contact with two or more walls of the tube, which would create a short circuit.  
         [0059]    As noted above, the spacers  3 ,  3 ′ are deformable, and will provide good surface contact between the electrical assembly  101  and the tube  1  for efficient heat transfer to maintain the desired operating temperature. The spacers  3 ,  3 ′ are therefore termed conformable spacers, since they conform to the interior surfaces  20 ,  26  of the tube  1  and the exterior surfaces  12 ,  12 ′ of the electrodes  2 ,  2 ′ (see FIG. 1), as will be described. In addition, the design of the tube  1  makes the tube  1  deformable and allows the tube  1  to be compressed around the electrode assembly  101  to ultimately compress the electrode assembly  101 , to further enhance this good surface contact.  
         [0060]    Thus, the tube  1  is manufactured first by extrusion and then by machining the extrusion to form the gaps  21  creating the thin walls  1 B. The thin walls  1 B are thin enough so that they can be bent under the compressive force applied when the screws  8  are tightened in the screw holes.  
         [0061]    [0061]FIGS. 3 and 4 show the tube  1  with the electrode assembly  101  therein in the uncompressed state, i.e. where the laser has been fully assembled but the screws  8  have not yet been fully tightened and therefore are not yet exerting compressive force. FIG. 3 is a cross-section in the middle of the tube  1  and FIG. 4 is a partial cross-section perpendicular to that of FIG. 3 and at one end  29  of the tube  1 .  
         [0062]    As shown in FIG. 4, the upper wall  15  has a deformable thin wall  1 E at end  29  extending in the direction perpendicular to thin wall  1 B. Thin wall  1 E may also be created by machining. therebetween. The electrode  2  is supported on the electrode  2 ′ by the spacers  4 , with the groove  2 A forming the gap  10  between the two electrodes  2 ,  2 ′ wherein the lasing medium is effective during operation. The spacer  3  is on top of the electrode  2 , but the interior surface  28  of the spacer  3  is spaced slightly above the exterior surface  12  of the electrode  2  by the disks  6 , separated by the gap  13 . The flanges  3 A of the spacer  3  are in the grooves  1 A and flank the central wall portion  1 D. In this state, a gap  31  still remains between the exterior surface  14  of the spacer  3  and the interior surface of the central wall portion  1 C.  
         [0063]    [0063]FIG. 5 corresponds to FIG. 3, and FIG. 6 to FIG. 4, each illustrating the laser  100  in its compressed state, achieved by turning the screws  8  further.  
         [0064]    As the screws  8  are tightened to a predetermined torque value, they will cause the flanges  1 D to bend to apply a permanent compressive force on the electrode assembly  101 . This force causes the conformable spacers  3 ,  3 ′ to conform to both the interior surfaces  20 ,  26  of the tube  1  and the exterior surfaces of the electrodes  2 ,  2 ′, encapsulating the dielectric disks  6 . This provides the good surface contact between the various parts of the laser  100 .  
         [0065]    The thin walls  1 E perpendicular to the thin walls  1 B allow the center wall portion  1 C to be brought into contact with the electrode assembly  101  without deforming the ends  29 ,  32  of the tube  1 . This in turn allows end caps with optics (not illustrated) to be located in pockets  1 F in the ends  29 ,  32  of the tube  1  and then welded into place to seal off the tube  1  and form a laser resonator. The gaps  13 ,  13 ′ remain to electrically isolate the electrodes  2 ,  2 ′ from the spacers  3 ,  3 ′.  
         [0066]    In operation in accordance with known practice, the sealed tube  1  is evacuated to form a vacuum inside which is then filled with a mixture of carbon dioxide and other gases. The electrodes  2 ,  2 ′ are attached to an RF power source (not illustrated) through RF feeds  7  on RF feed mounting blocks  5 .  
         [0067]    When the electrodes  2 ,  2 ′ are energized, a plasma forms in the gap  10  between the electrodes  2 ,  2 ′. The heat generated in the plasma is transferred to the electrodes  2 ,  2 ′. From the electrodes  2 ,  2 ′, the heat is drawn through the dielectric disks  6 ,  6 ′ to the spacers  3 ,  3 ′ and then to the central portions  17 ,  17 ′ of the upper and lower surfaces of the tube  1 . The heat is drawn from the outside of the tube  1  into the heat sinks  34 , where it is dissipated to the atmosphere by, for example, a fan blowing air across the heat sink fins. An alternative configuration could employ a water cooled jacket in place of the air cooled heat sink fins to dissipate heat from the tube walls.  
         [0068]    This design of the tube  1  provides many advantages. First, the extruded tube with minimal machining provides both features to locate the electrode assembly  101  in the tube  1  to maintain proper alignment with the optics and a means to deform the tube to compress the electrode assembly and maintain uniform good surface contact for efficient heat transfer. This method does not rely on the material strength or temper of the tube walls to compress the electrode assembly, allowing the tube to be manufactured from a greater variety of materials.  
         [0069]    This design also provides thin walls for deformation of the tube to compress the electrode assembly while allowing the tube walls to be much thicker along the contact areas between the tube and the electrode assembly, i.e. at the center wall portions  1 C,  25 . Therefore, while the thin walls deform, the thicker walled contact areas stay flat for good surface contact. Moreover, these contact areas are of substantially the same size, so that the cooling is symmetrical from top and bottom and will therefore not cause distortions.  
         [0070]    Contrary to the prior art described above, in this design atmospheric pressure does not play a part in maintaining the compressive force on the electrode assembly, so altitude does not effect the performance of the design.  
         [0071]    Similarly, only one side (the upper wall) of the tube is required to deform, allowing the opposite side to be used as a reference surface for aligning the optics to the electrodes.  
         [0072]    Moreover, no special tooling is required to assemble the tube.  
         [0073]    The present invention as embodied in the above-described laser is additionally highly advantageous as compared with the prior art by virtue of the intermediate conformable spacers  3 ,  3 ′ between the dielectric disks  6 ,  6 ′ and the inner surfaces of the tube walls. These spacers  3 ,  3 ′ are additional elements that provide a number of benefits.  
         [0074]    First, the spacers  3 ,  3 ′ can deform and flex to accommodate surface roughness and imperfections as well as bows or twists in the tube walls. This is in contrast to the dielectric material layers or pieces in the prior art that were subject to cracking under pressure or stress. This reduces the need for machined surfaces for good thermal contact between the electrodes, dielectric material and tube walls.  
         [0075]    The conformable spacers  3 ,  3 ′ also allow the tube extrusion to be thicker and stronger, since the spacers will deform for good surface contact rather than the tube walls. A stronger tube can more reliably keep the optics in alignment.  
         [0076]    The conformable spacers  3 ,  3 ′ also allow for the use of fewer and larger pieces of dielectric material, since the possibility of cracking of the dielectric material is reduced. Fewer and larger pieces of dielectric material reduce the cost and complexity of the design.  
         [0077]    In addition, the surfaces of the spacers  3 ,  3 ′ can be readily machined, unlike the inside walls of the tube. This allows for the machining of the pockets  3 B,  3 B′ to help capture the dielectric pieces and hold the electrodes  2 ,  2 ′ in place. The flanges  3 B,  3 B′ are also readily machined to position the whole electrode assembly  101  inside the tube  1 .  
         [0078]    The above-discussed embodiment of the present invention maintains both electrodes out of electrical contact with the walls of the tube. However, it is possible for one of the electrodes to be electrically insulated from the walls and the other electrode to be grounded to the walls. For symmetric heat transfer, the dielectric material used for electrical insulation could be replaced at the grounded electrode with smaller elements of aluminum to balance the differential in thermal conductivity between the two materials. Other electrically conductive materials could be used, with a corresponding adaptation for symmetry.  
         [0079]    While the above-described embodiment is a carbon dioxide laser, it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that other types of lasers may advantageously employ the present invention.  
         [0080]    It is also noted that the dielectric material can be provided in other shapes than disks and in other formats. For example, the dielectric material could be deposited as a coating onto the exterior surface of each electrode, onto the interior surfaces of the walls of the tube, or onto one of each or both. This could be done by, for example, anodizing, flame spraying or plasma spraying. The coating or coatings would be used in conjunction with the conformable spacers in the same manner as the ceramic (dielectric) elements.  
         [0081]    In other embodiments, one, some or all of the elements made of a dielectric material may be made of another suitably insulative, heat conducting material such as a semiconducting material, for example, silicon, germanium and gallium arsenide. In such embodiments, if a voltage were applied across the semiconductor in the right direction, the semiconductor would act as an insulator.  
         [0082]    In accordance with a further development of the present invention, the arrangement of spacers can be varied in accordance with a desired application. FIG. 7 illustrates the arrangement of conformable spacers  50 ,  52  and heat conducting, electrically insulating spacers  54 ,  56  with electrodes  58 ,  60  in a housing  62  that generally conforms to the arrangement shown in FIG. 1. That is, the interior surface of the insulating spacer  54  is in contact with the exterior surface of the electrode  58 , the exterior surface of the insulating spacer  54  is in contact with the interior surface of the conformable spacer  50 , and the exterior surface of the conformable spacer  50  is in contact with the top interior surface of the housing  62 . The same arrangement applies to the conformable spacer  52 , the insulating spacer  56 , the electrode  60  and the lower interior surface of the housing  62 .  
         [0083]    [0083]FIG. 8 illustrates another embodiment with a different arrangement of spacers. In this embodiment, the positions of the conformable spacers and the insulating spacers are reversed. Thus, the interior surface of the conformable spacer  50  is in contact with the exterior surface of the electrode  58 , the exterior surface of the conformable spacer  50  is in contact with the interior surface of the insulating spacer  54 , and the exterior surface of the insulating spacer  54  is in contact with the top interior surface of the housing  62 . The same arrangement applies to the conformable spacer  52 , the insulating spacer  56 , the electrode  60  and the lower interior surface of the housing  62 .  
         [0084]    [0084]FIG. 9 illustrates yet another embodiment that combines features of the embodiments of FIGS. 7 and 8 by providing a third spacer, i.e. another insulating spacer, between each electrode and the housing. That is, the interior surface of the insulating spacer  54  is in contact with the exterior surface of the electrode  58 , the exterior surface of the insulating spacer  54  is in contact with the interior surface of the conformable spacer  50 , the exterior surface of the conformable spacer  50  is in contact with the interior surface of the insulating spacer  64  and the exterior surface of the insulating spacer  64  is in contact with the top interior surface of the housing  62 . The same arrangement applies to the conformable spacer  52 , the insulating spacers  56  and  66 , the electrode  60  and the lower interior surface of the housing  62 .  
         [0085]    The different arrangements of spacers may be combined in any appropriate way in a single embodiment, so that the upper and lower electrodes each independently have any one of the three spacer arrangements.  
         [0086]    While the disclosed method and apparatus has been particularly shown and described with respect to the preferred embodiments, it is understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications in form and detail may be made therein without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Accordingly, modifications such as those suggested above, but not limited thereto are to be considered within the scope of the invention, which is to be determined by reference to the appended claims.