LASER-INDUCED SEPARATION OF ISOTOPES

The techniques of isotope separation, including the techniques making use of light, have a half-century-long history, but they are being developed further with the latest achievements of science and technology. In the 1970s, a new stage in the development of highly efficient isotope separation techniques began with the use of laser radiation and basically new possibilities of interaction of this radiation with atoms and molecules. In order to understand the advantages of these new techniques, a short classification of all possible isotope separation techniques is indicated.