棒状钕玻璃热容激光器热透镜自平衡补偿方法分析

针对热容激光器的热透镜效应,给出了棒状钕玻璃热容激光器的热透镜公式表达式。理论上分析了热透镜焦距自平衡补偿方法的基本原理。在考虑了棒状钕玻璃热容激光器的具体特性的基础上,设计了一种简单的热透镜焦距自平衡补偿方法,使光抽运钕玻璃热容激光器在热透镜焦距变化情况下,可以使激光输出光斑大小稳定。为了解棒状热容激光器热透镜焦距的影响,利用自研的光栅型曲率传感器测量了热容激光器总的热透镜等效焦距的大小,结果表明热传导在抽运光发射完20 s左右后才建立热平衡产生了明显的热透镜效应; 随着抽运脉冲个数的增加,热透镜效应随之变大。     

自加热式铜蒸气激光器的热气体透镜研究

本文分析了自加热式铜蒸气激光器放电管内的热气体透镜效应,并指出不同的铜蒸气激光器在稳定工作时可能等效为正透镜,也可能等效为负透镜。在实验部分,本文给出了热气体透镜焦距与输入功率、缓冲气体压强的关系,描绘了热气体透镜从负透镜变化到正透镜的动态过程。     

固体激光器热透镜效应的调控

利用工作腔的热透镜模型, 分析了有激光发射下固体激光器的谐振腔配置对热透镜效应和稳定区的影响, 论述了通过改变谐振腔配置调控热效应的可行性.实验上, 使用一台Nd: YAG激光器对理论作了验证, 实现了对热透镜光焦度及稳定区分布的调控.     

固体激光棒热透镜焦距的测量

固体激光棒中的热透镜效应对激光器的性能有很大的影响.在固体激光器的热稳腔的设计中也需要知道激光棒的热透镜焦距的数值,因此测量激光棒的热透镜焦距是必要的和有意义的.我们采用类似于文献[1]中的方法,测量了三种常用的固体激光棒在泵浦期间和泵浦后,各个时刻的热透镜焦距的数值.在单脉冲泵浦期间,红宝石、Nd:YAG和钕玻璃三种激光棒的热透镜焦距均为负值. 测量热透镜焦距的原理如图1所示.设He-Ne探测激光束的束腰半径为ω0,束腰和光阑离热透镜的距离分别为d1和d2。ωn和ωm分别为存在热透镜(例如负透镜)和无热透镜时探测激光束到达光…     

腔内双棒串接的基模动态稳定腔研究

为了获得大功率高亮度的激光光源,设计并实现了一种使用双棒串接的基模动态稳定谐振腔.通过补偿热致双折射效应以及合理地设计腔内参数,在使用闪光灯抽运的条件下获得了61W的基模连续输出.使用等效热透镜的方法分析了谐振腔参数对激光器性能的影响,解释了输出镜和全反镜的距离对激光器性能所起的不同作用. 关键词： 动态稳定腔 双棒 谐振腔模式     

高功率激光器窗口三维温度场分析及其热透镜研究

对高功率激光器输出耦合镜的受热情况进行了分析,在实际工作模型下 设定了圆柱坐标下的热传导方程边界条件。对高功率激光器输出耦合镜所处的物理状态进行了符合实际情况的简化,求得了热传导方程的解析解。对GaAs窗口材料分析了高功率激光器输出耦合镜内部温度分布,在考虑了材料折射率与线膨胀系数随温度变化的因素后,计算了等效光程变化及其引起的热透镜效应。     

端面抽运固体激光器热透镜效应的实验研究

提出一种易于实现、对激光器本身没有干扰、高空间精度、可实时测量介质热透镜的干涉测量方法. 并利用此方法全面研究了端面抽运Nd:YVO4激光器的热透镜效应，为认识激光介质的热效应和设计此类激光器提供了参考.  关键词： 热透镜 端面抽运 固体激光器     

2.94 μm LiNbO3声光调Q Er:YAG激光输出脉冲特性

2.94 μm纳秒铒激光是宽调谐中红外激光和临床医疗研究中重要的固体激光源.本文研制了新型LiNbO₃声光调Q Er:YAG激光器,研究了20 Hz重复频率下不同调Q延迟时间和耦合腔镜反射率对激光输出脉冲特性的影响规律.根据测量激光器的热透镜焦距设计了凹凸谐振腔补偿热透镜效应,获得了激光单脉冲能量为34.68 mJ、脉冲宽度为119.9 ns的调Q输出,相应的峰值功率为289.24 kW,与平平腔相比输出能量提高了2.09倍.据我们所知,这是目前声光调Q Er:YAG激光器中获得的最高能量,可为进一步研究宽调谐中红外激光技术提供新的手段.     

Nd:YAG棒中的热光效应计算

激光通过工作物质时所产生的热透镜以及应力双折射两种效应是高功率二极管泵浦激光器(DPL)的设计和优化过程中必需考虑的因素.讨论了采用有限差分光束传播法计算热透镜效应及结合材料的弹光系数矩阵计算应力双折射效应的一般方法,并具体针对长6 cm、均匀泵浦的NdYAG棒,计算了这两种效应对光束的影响.结果表明,由于热透镜的聚焦效应,棒中心的光场振幅在通过棒后增大了6%,棒中心与边缘产生了20个波长的相位差;同时,应力引起的双折射造成了约30%的功率损失.     

高功率高重复频率全固态激光器热透镜效应补偿与分析

将kHz高功率固体激光器增益介质当作厚透镜处理,建立了热透镜效应分析的理论模型,使用矩阵的方法对等效热透镜腔进行分析.对增益介质抽运均匀性进行了改善,通过分析模拟计算结果,设计了混合非稳腔结构,选择了最佳凸面镜曲率半径对热透镜效应进行补偿.试验结果表明,补偿效果明显,kHz高功率全固态激光器的光束发散角优于1.3 mrad.     

Lasers for materials processing: specifications and trends

An overview is given of the types of lasers dominating the field of laser materials processing. The most prominent lasers in this field are the CO₂ and the Nd: YAG laser. The domain of CO₂ lasers is applications which demand high laser powers (up to 30 kW are available at present), whereas the domain of Nd:YAG lasers is micro-machining applications. In the kilowatt range of laser output power, the two types of lasers are in competition. New diffusion-cooled CO₂ laser systems are capable of output laser powers of several kilowatts, with good beam qualities, while still being quite compact. The output power and beam quality of Nd:YAG lasers has been improved in recent years, so that Nd:YAG lasers are now an alternative to CO₂ lasers even in the kilowatt range. This is especially true for applications that demand optical fibre transmission of the laser beam, which is possible with Nd:YAG laser light but not with the longerwavelength light emitted by CO₂ lasers. The main problem in solid-state lasers such as Nd:YAG is the thermal lensing effect and damage due to thermal stresses. In order to reduce thermal loading, cooling has to be enhanced. Several alternative geometries have been proposed to reduce thermal loading and, by this, thermal lensing effects. There are now slab and tube geometries which allow much higher output powers than the conventionally used laser rods. A very new scheme proposes a thin slab whose cooled side is also used as one of the laser mirrors, so that thermal gradients occur mainly in the direction of the beam propagation and not perpendicular to it, as is the case in the other geometries. As well as CO₂ and Nd:YAG lasers, semiconductor laser diodes are very promising for direct use of the emitted light or as pump sources for Nd:YAG and other solid-state lasers. When packaging together thousands of single laser diodes, output powers of several kilowatts can be realized. Major problems are collimation of the highly divergent laser beams and cooling of the laser diode bars.     

Theoretical investigation on thermal lensing effects of Yb:KY(WO4)2 in diode-pumped lasers

Based on the features of laser diode end-pumped lasers, a thermal model of Yb:KY(WO₄)₂(Yb:KYW) with square cross-section was established. Considering the heat transfer on side faces, the anisotropic of thermal conductivity and the latest reports about thermo-optic coefficient, thermal expansion coefficient and thermal conductivity, temperature distribution, end-pumped face distortion and thermal lens focal length of Yb:KYW were more precisely obtained using finite difference method to solve Poisson equation in a rectangular Cartesian coordinate for the first time. At the pump power of 14 W, the highest temperature located at the center of end-pumped face was 243.8 °C, the highest distortion was 0.28 μm, and the thermal lens focal length was 5.4 cm along z-axis and −4.9 cm along x-axis. The results show that thermal lensing effects in the b-cut Yb:KYW were mainly determined by the anisotropic thermal expansion of Yb:KYW, and further present thermal lensing effects become weaker after considering the heat transfer. This work is significant for compensating the thermal lensing effect and improving the resonator stability of diode-pumped anisotropy crystal lasers.     

Thermal lensing, thermal management and transverse mode control in microchip VECSELs

Finite-element analysis is used to explore the practicalities and power-scaling potential of quasi-monolithic microchip vertical-external-cavity surface-emitting lasers: thermal lensing and its implications for transverse mode control are emphasised. A comparison is made between the use of sapphire and diamond heat spreaders. The experimental characterisation of an InGaAs/sapphire microchip VECSEL is presented as an exemplar system and the factors affecting slope efficiency, threshold and output power roll-over are examined. By comparing experimental measurements with the finite-element model, the key role of thermal lensing in transverse mode control is demonstrated. PACS 42.55.Xi; 42.55.Rz; 42.55.Px     

Thermal lensing compensation principle for the ACIGA's High Optical Power Test Facility Test 1

Thermal lensing is becoming recognized as one of the dominant obstacles to the second generation of laser interferometric gravitational wave detectors. Very high optical power is required to circulate in the interferometer to reach the sensitivity goal, creating strong thermal induced wavefront distortion. These effects will be studied at the High Optical Power Test Facility in Gingin, Western Australia. In this paper, we present simulation results for the first test planned for the middle of 2004. This experiment will produce 5 kW of optical power circulating inside a Fabry–Perot cavity and will demonstrate large thermal lensing effects. Two compensation methods were investigated to offset the negative effect of thermal lensing on the cavity: a compensation plate within the arm cavity and adaptive laser mode matching. Advantages and disadvantages of both systems are discussed.     

Lensing effects in Q-switched unstable laser cavities with side-pumped Nd:YAG and ruby crystal rods

We present a comprehensive numerical model that accounts for non-uniform pumping and a related thermal and electronic lensing effects in Q-switched unstable laser cavities. We study the influence of these effects on the output beam profile in Nd:YAG and ruby laser systems with side-pumped crystal rods. We also constructed both lasers to experimentally validate the numerical results and found very good agreement. The results show that both types of lensing effects are particularly detrimental in ruby, while they are insignificant in Nd:YAG.     

Review of the formula of thermal focal length in side-pumped laser rods

The expressions of focal length in side-pumped rod lasers are studied. Good agreement is obtained between simulation and experiments reported previously, using Koechner's theory. The results reveal that underestimation of thermal lens accrues from overestimating the material's thermal conduction and without considering the nonuniform heat deposit. In the case of Nd:YAG rods, temperature-dependent variation of the refractive index constitutes the major contribution of thermal lensing, whereas the temperature- and stress-dependent variations of the refractive index make the major contributions of thermal lensing for Nd:Glass rod lasers.     

A Nd: YAG laser with a flat-top beam profile and constant divergence

An active resonator designed especially for Nd: YAG lasers is proposed. The expected performance of this resonator is the generation of a laser beam with a flat-topped distribution and a divergence invariant under the thermal lensing effect, such that it could be applied to surface treatment without special optical or mechanical elements. The beam quality and efficiency of such a resonator are presented and discussed in comparison with a parallel-plane resonator as adopted by most industrial Nd: YAG lasers.     

Proposed enhancement of single mode operation in VCSELs using diffused quantum well structure

The use of interdiffused quantum wells to enhance single transverse mode operation in vertical cavity surface emitting semiconductor lasers is proposed and analysed theoretically. It is found that by introducing a step diffused quantum well structure inside the core region of a quantum-well active layer, the influence of self-focusing (due to carrier spatial hole burning and thermal lensing) on the profile of transverse modes can be minimized. Therefore, stable single-mode operation in vertical cavity surface emitting lasers can be maintained.