High-power, compact, diode-pumped, tunable laser
AssigneeElectro Scientific Industries, Inc.
InventorsBrian Baird, Richard DeFreez
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A high-power semiconductor diode laser or array of semiconductor diode lasers (14) optically end-pumps a compact, tunable, solid-state laser (28) with a pumping beam (74) well-matched to the absorption bandwidth and mode volume (78) of the solid-state laser (28). Tilted birefringent plates (210) positioned within the solid-state resonator cavity (16) are employed to control the spectral bandwidth and wavelength output of the waveguide pumping beam (204). Infrared output (100) generated by such a solid-state laser (28) is coupled into a nonlinear waveguide (200) and converted to visible output (206) through the process of second-harmonic generation.
Claims31
A method for generating usable laser optical output substantially in a 360-460 nm range, comprising:
- generating with a high-power diode laser an optical pumping output at a pumping emission wavelength;
- coupling said optical pumping output into a solid-state lasant positioned within a solid-state resonator cavity, said solid-state lasant having an absorption bandwidth well-matched to said pumping emission wavelength and a solid-state laser optical output in a 720-920 nm wavelength range;
- and
- coupling said solid-state laser optical output into a nonlinear waveguide for converting said solid-state laser optical output from said 720-920 nm wavelength range to usable laser optical output in said 360-460 nm wavelength range.
A laser system for generating usable laser system optical output in a 360-460 nm wavelength range, comprising:
- a high-power diode laser to generate optical pumping output at a pumping emission wavelength;
- a solid-state lasant positioned within a solid-state resonator cavity, said solid-state lasant having an absorption bandwidth that is well-matched to said pumping emission wavelength and a solid-state laser optical output in a 720-920 nm wavelength range;
- and
- a nonlinear waveguide for converting said solid-state laser optical output from said 720-920 nm range to usable laser system optical output in said 360-460 nm wavelength range.
A method for processing a target sensitive to usable laser optical output in a 360-460 nm range, comprising:
- generating with a high-power diode laser an optical pumping output at a pumping emission wavelength;
- coupling said optical pumping output into a solid-state lasant positioned within a solid-state resonator cavity, said solid-state lasant having an absorption bandwidth well-matched to said pumping emission wavelength and a solid-state laser optical output in a 720-920 nm wavelength range;
- coupling said solid-state laser optical output into a nonlinear waveguide for converting said solid-state laser optical output from said 720-920 nm wavelength range to said usable laser optical output in said 360-460 nm wavelength range;
- and
- directing said usable laser optical output toward said target to process it.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.