266nm pulsed laser damage on UV image intensifier

The damage of a nanosecond pulse laser on ultraviolet(UV) image intensifier was studied. A laser pulsed with a wavelength of 266nm and pulse width of 25ns was used to radiate an UV imager intensifier. The laser induced damage threshold(LIDT) of the internal components of the UV imager intensifier was measured, and the LIDTs of the optical windows, the microchannel plate and the ultraviolet photocathodes are 1.8 mJ / cm(2), 3.3 mJ / cm(2) and 17.6 mJ / cm(2), respectively. It is shown that as the incident laser energy increases, the order of damage of the components inside the image intensifier is: photocathode, microchannel plate and optical window.