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US 11,698,482 B2Granted
Laser systems utilizing cellular-core optical fibers for beam shaping
AssigneePanasonic Connect North America, Division of Panasonic Corporation of North America
InventorsFrancisco Villarreal-Saucedo, Wang-Long Zhou, Parviz Tayebati
Life of this patent
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Abstract
In various embodiments, the beam parameter product and/or beam shape of a laser beam is adjusted by directing the laser beam across a path along the input end of a cellular-core optical fiber. The beam emitted at the output end of the cellular-core optical fiber may be utilized to process a workpiece.
Claims28
A method of forming a laser beam, the method comprising:
- providing a cellular-core optical fiber having an input end and an output end opposite the input end, the cellular-core optical fiber comprising (i) a plurality of core regions, (ii) an inter-core cladding region surrounding and extending between the core regions, and (iii) an outer cladding surrounding the inter-core cladding region, wherein a refractive index of each of the core regions is larger than a refractive index of the inter-core cladding region;
- and
- directing an input laser beam across the input end of the cellular-core optical fiber along a path comprising one or more of the core regions, whereby at least one of a beam shape or a beam parameter product of an output beam emitted at the output end of the cellular-core optical fiber is determined at least in part by the path of the input laser beam.
A method of forming a laser beam, the method comprising:
- providing a cellular-core optical fiber having an input end and an output end opposite the input end, the cellular-core optical fiber comprising (i) a plurality of core regions, (ii) an inter-core cladding region surrounding and extending between the core regions, and (iii) an outer cladding surrounding the inter-core cladding region, wherein a refractive index of each of the core regions is larger than a refractive index of the inter-core cladding region;
- and
- directing an input laser beam into one or more of the core regions and into the inter-core cladding region, whereby at least one of a beam shape or a beam parameter product of an output beam emitted at the output end of the cellular-core optical fiber is determined at least in part by the one or more core regions into which the input laser beam is directed.
A method of forming a laser beam, the method comprising:
- providing a cellular-core optical fiber having an input end and an output end opposite the input end, the cellular-core optical fiber comprising (i) a plurality of core regions, (ii) an inter-core cladding region surrounding and extending between the core regions, and (iii) an outer cladding surrounding the inter-core cladding region, wherein a refractive index of each of the core regions is larger than a refractive index of the inter-core cladding region;
- and
- directing an input laser beam into only one of the core regions while not directing any laser light into any of the other core regions, and, optionally, directing the input laser beam into the inter-core cladding region, whereby at least one of a beam shape or a beam parameter product of an output beam emitted at the output end of the cellular-core optical fiber is determined at least in part by the single core region into which the input laser beam is directed.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.