Side pumping arrangement
AssigneeHoya Corporation
InventorsJean-Marc Heritier, Edward C. Rea, Jr.
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The use of rectangular cross-section gain material with two or more cylindrical lenses placed in close proximity or attached to opposite sides of the gain material allows for an efficient pumping of the gain material in an optical gain component. The optical gain component can be used in a laser device. Laser diode bars are arranged so as to pump the gain material through the lenses. A cooling apparatus can cool a rectangular cross-section gain material through two opposite flat sides so that no thermal birefringence is created. An optical gain component with two gain materials can orient these two gain materials such that the small-signal gain is almost circular and gaussian in profile with a large center peak tapering off to a much lower gain at the edges.
Claims39
An optical gain component comprising:
- a gain material with a rectangular cross-section having four sides and two ends;
- two positive cylindrical lenses attached on their planar surfaces to opposite sides of the gain material;
- and
- two stacks of at least one laser diode bars arranged so as to pump the gain material through the lenses.
An optical gain component comprising:
- a gain material with a rectangular cross-section having four sides and two ends;
- two stacks of non-collimated laser diode bars arranged to emit pumping energy into two opposite sides of the gain material;
- and
- two cylindrical lenses arranged in the path of the pumping energy to roughly collimate the pumping energy into the two opposite sides of the gain material.
A method of forming a laser beam including the steps of:
- providing a gain material with a rectangular cross-section, four sides and two ends;
- pumping the gain material through two cylindrical lenses from two opposite sides with two stacks of at least one laser diode bars such that the gain material has a saddle shaped gain profile.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.