High power laser imaging systems

A laser system capable of emitting a line beam, the laser system comprising:

• a homogenizer optically coupled to an optical beam for homogenizing the optical beam across at least one transverse axis thereof;
• and
• a reflective relay optically coupled to said homogenizer for receiving the homogenized optical beam and optically imaging the homogenized optical beam to an imaging surface;
• wherein the reflective optical relay is a catoptric relay including a concave mirror and a convex mirror disposed in a concentric relation to one another, and a pair of turning mirrors disposed in relation to said concave mirror and said convex mirror and optically coupled to said concave mirror, said turning mirrors having non-planar aspheric surfaces and being mirror images of each other.

A laser imaging system comprising:

• an optical source that produces an input light beam;
• an optical mask optically coupled to said optical source, said mask situated to provide a patterned input light beam;
• and
• a reflective optical relay optically coupled to said mask, the reflective optical relay including a concave outer mirror and a convex inner mirror, the concave outer mirror being situated to receive the patterned input light beam in a first portion of an elongate bilaterally symmetric and rotationally asymmetric ring field of reduced aberration and to reflect the patterned input light beam so as to direct the patterned input light beam to the convex inner mirror, the convex inner mirror being situated to receive the patterned input light beam and to reflect the patterned input light beam to a second portion of the elongate bilaterally symmetric and rotationally asymmetric ring field of the concave outer mirror.

A laser line beam system, comprising:

• a plurality of diode laser modules providing plurality of output beams;
• a cylindrical lens situated to receive the plurality of output beams and telecentrically focus the plurality of output beams;
• a homogenizing light pipe situated to receive the focused plurality of output beams and configured to homogenize the output beams across one or more transverse axes into a single homogenized output line beam;
• and
• an off-axis reflective relay including a concave mirror and a convex mirror situated in a non-concentric relation and having respective centers of curvature lying on a common system axis, the convex mirror having first and second surfaces and an internal portion, the first surface being anti-reflective so as to transmit light, the second surface being reflective so as to reflect light received through the internal portion, the off-axis reflective relay being situated to receive at least a portion of the homogenized output line beam in a first off-axis portion and configured to reflect the at least a portion of the homogenized output line beam from a second off-axis portion to a target.

A laser induced thermally imaged surface formed by a method comprising:

• generating an optical beam of 2 kW or greater and having an apodized intensity profile;
• directing the optical beam to a mask such that a patterned optical beam is created;
• and
• reflectively projecting the patterned optical beam through an elongate bilaterally symmetric and rotationally asymmetric ring field of reduced aberration of an optical relay having a to the laser induced thermally imaged surface.

A method of forming a laser induced thermally imaged surface, comprising:

• generating an optical beam having a beam power of 2 kW or greater and having an apodized intensity profile;
• directing the optical beam to a mask so as to produce a patterned optical beam;
• and
• reflectively projecting the patterned optical beam through an optical relay having an elongate bilaterally symmetric and rotationally asymmetric ring field of reduced aberration to form the laser induced thermally imaged surface.

A method of processing materials with an optical line beam, the method comprising:

• directing at least a portion of the optical line beam generated with one or more laser sources towards an off-axis reflective optical relay, the off-axis reflective optical relay including concave and convex mirrors having respective centers of curvature non-concentrically situated on a common axis, the concave mirror situated to receive light in a first off-axis portion and to direct light from a second off-axis portion, the convex mirror having first and second surfaces and an internal portion, the first surface being anti-reflective so as to transmit light, said second surface being reflective so as to reflect light through the internal portion;
• reflecting the portion of the optical line beam through the reflective optical relay;
• and
• imaging the portion of the optical line beam at unit magnification at a work surface.

A method of processing materials comprising:

• emitting laser beams from a plurality of laser diode modules;
• telecentrically imaging the laser beams into a beam homogenizer so as to form an homogenized beam having a power of 2 kW or greater;
• directing the homogenized beam through a mask so as to form an output beam;
• directing the output beam from an object plane through a reflective relay having a pair of non-planar aspheric turning mirrors;
• and
• imaging the optical beam at unit magnification to an image plane at a work surface.