Laser beam source for a directional infrared countermeasures (DIRCM) weapon system

A laser beam source arrangement comprising:

• a pumping laser beam source emitting a single monochromatic pumping laser beam along a beam path, wherein said pumping laser beam has a first cross-sectional dimension orthogonal to said beam path;
• and
• an optical parametric oscillator including an oscillator crystal;
• wherein said oscillator crystal includes plural crystal zone groups;
• wherein each one of said crystal zone groups respectively has a second cross-sectional dimension substantially corresponding to said first cross-sectional dimension of said pumping laser beam;
• wherein each one of said crystal zone groups respectively includes plural crystal zones that are respectively differently periodically polarized relative to each other and that respectively have different lattice constants relative to each other;
• and
• wherein said oscillator crystal is arranged in said beam path such that said pumping laser beam impinges on all of said crystal zones of a respective selected one of said crystal zone groups positioned in said beam path such that said optical parametric oscillator simultaneously emits plural output laser beams that respectively have different output wavelengths relative to each other and that are respectively emitted by said plural crystal zones of said selected one of said crystal zone groups.

A method of generating a laser beam using a pumping laser beam source and an optical parametric oscillator including an oscillator crystal, said method comprising the following steps:

• a) generating a single monochromatic pumping laser beam and directing said pumping laser beam along a beam path using said pumping laser beam source;
• b) impinging said pumping laser beam onto said oscillator so as to energize said oscillator and cause said oscillator to emit an output laser beam;
• and
• c) causing a relative movement between said oscillator crystal and said beam path so that a selected portion of said oscillator crystal is intersected by said beam path thereby varying an output wavelength composition of said output laser beam;
• wherein said oscillator crystal includes a plurality of differently periodically polarized crystal zones is respectively having different lattice constants, and
• wherein said step c) is carried out so that a selected plurality of said crystal zones are simultaneously intersected by said beam path and impinged on by said pumping laser beam, and said output wavelength composition of said output laser beam consists of a selected plurality of different wavelength components respectively correlated to said respective lattice constants of said selected plurality of said crystal zones.

A laser beam source arrangement comprising:

• an optical parametric oscillator crystal comprising a plurality of crystal zones that respectively have different crystal lattice constants;
• pumping laser means for emitting a single laser beam having a single laser beam wavelength and having a beam width, and for impinging said laser beam onto said crystal so that said laser beam impinges on and irradiates plural adjacent ones of said crystal zones simultaneously, wherein said beam width corresponds to a cumulative total width of said plural adjacent ones of said crystal zones;
• and
• a drive mechanism connected to said crystal to move said crystal transversely relative to said laser beam.

A laser beam source arrangement comprising:

• an optical parametric oscillator crystal comprising a plurality of crystal zones that respectively have different crystal lattice constants;
• and
• a pumping laser source that emits a monochromatic laser beam along a beam path, and that has a beam width corresponding to a cumulative total width of plural adjacent ones of said crystal zones;
• wherein said crystal is arranged on said beam path.