A Thin Disk Laser System
AssigneeFyzikalni Ustav Av Cr, V. V. I.
InventorsKohei Hashimoto, Michal Chyla, Martin SMRZ
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Abstract
A beam shaping optical system for direct pumping of thin disk laser head with laser diode module. The present invention relates to a laser system. More particularly, the present invention relates to a diode pumped laser system. Even more particularly, the present invention relates to a laser diode pumped thin disk laser, wherein the laser head is coupled to the laser diode-pumping source by a fiber cable.
Claims10
A laser system homogenizing an optical pump beam (11) from an inhomogeneous pump source (1) and delivering the homogenous pump beam (61) to a laser head (7) comprising a thin disk active medium amplifying the homogenized pump beam (61), wherein the system comprises:
- a source (1) generating an inhomogeneous optical beam (11) in term of optical intensity;
- a single piece of a beam-dividing and rotating prism (2) receiving the inhomogeneous optical beam (11), wherein the beam-dividing and rotating prism has a first part (201) providing longer optical path and a second part (202) providing shorter optical path, and wherein
- the beam-dividing and rotating prism (2) is configured to divide the inhomogeneous optical beam (11) into two parts, wherein the first part is propagating through the longer optical path and the second part is propagating through the shorter optical path, and wherein
- the beam-dividing and rotating prism (2) is configured to rotate each parts by the same direction and by the same angle;
- a focusing means (3 and 4) receiving both parts (21 and 31) of the beam from the beam-dividing and rotating prism (2);
- and focusing thereof into a homogenizer (5);
- thereby providing a homogenized optical pump beam (51);
- and
- a laser head (7) receiving the homogenized optical beam (51) from the homogenizer (5), wherein the laser head (7) comprises a thin disk, and wherein the homogenized optical beam (51) is directed onto the thin disk.
The system according to anyone of the preceding claims, wherein the homogenizer (5) is a polygonal homogenizer, preferably an octagonal homogenizer with asymmetric geometry, wherein vertical and horizontal cross sections dimensions are configured to compensate difference in magnification of vertical and horizontal planes introduced by aberrations of a parabolic mirror.
The system according to anyone of the preceding claims, wherein the focusing means (3 and 4) are two cylindrical lenses, wherein the second lens (4) direction is orthogonal to the first lens (3), and wherein the focal lengths are chosen to fit within the numerical aperture of the homogenizer (5), based on the size of the beam (21) emitted from the beam-dividing and rotating prism (2).
A laser system homogenizing an optical pump beam (11) from an inhomogeneous pump source (1) and delivering the homogenous pump beam (61) to a laser head (7) comprising a thin disk active medium amplifying the homogenized pump beam (61), wherein the system comprises:
- a plurality of source (1) generating an inhomogeneous optical beam (11) in term of optical intensity;
- means (2′) for dividing and collimating beam comprising:
- a fast axis collimator (FAC) receiving inhomogeneous optical beam (11) from the plurality of the source (1);
- a beam twister receiving the optical beam from the fast axis collimator (FAC);
- and
- a slow axis collimator (SAC) receiving the inhomogeneous optical beam (11) from the beam twister;
- and
- a focusing means (301 and 302) receiving the beam from the means (2′) for dividing and collimating beam;
- and focusing thereof into a homogenizer (5);
- thereby providing a homogenized optical pump beam (51);
- and
- a laser head (7) receiving the homogenized optical beam (51) from the homogenizer (5), wherein the laser head (7) comprises a thin disk, and wherein the homogenized optical beam (51) is directed onto the thin disk.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.