Sodium-ethane excimer pairs are studied and proved to be a great choice of excimer pumped sodium laser (XPNaL) gain media. The lifetime of the sodium D2 line is studied in a sodium-ethane excimer system excited by a 553 nm laser, and the observed phenomenon of lifetime lengthening is discussed. Amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) of the sodium D2 line is successfully obtained, and its time-resolved and spectroscopic characteristics are studied experimentally. According to the intensity of the A
