Laser dye mixtures

Properties necessary to obtain efficient laser action from laser dyes are reviewed. It is concluded that the dye added (booster dye) to a laser dye (active dye) solution to increase its efficiency need not necessarily be a laser dye. This is illustrated by considering different spectral locations of a triplet-triplet absorption band present in the booster dye relative to the location of the laser action region (part of the fluorescence spectrum) of the active laser dye. Conditions required for booster dyes to form efficient dye mixtures are given. These observations are used to explain why specific well known laser dye mixtures show efficient, little, or no laser action at all.     

Undamped relaxation oscillations due to self-gain-switching of laser dye mixtures

Undamped relaxation oscillations were observed from a short, simple dye laser using a laser dye mixture which was pumped at 337 nm using ns pulses. The dye solution contained Rh101 as first laser dye, together with DTDCI in double function as saturable absorber and second laser dye. Two trains of intense laser pulses were generated near 619 and 685 nm, with pulse durations of ca. 4 and 2 times the resonator transit time, respectively. This method of short-pulse generation is related to double mode-locking of dye lasers. Model calculations are used to describe the pulse generation by self-gain-switching, and to estimate radiative and nonradiative contributions towards saturation of the absorber dye.     

The effect of dye photodegradation on the performance of dye lasers

Detailed experimental study of laser dye stability and the subsequent effects of photodegradation products on the operation of a Nd:YAG laser pumped Rhodamine-6G pulsed dye oscillator has been carried out. Deterioration of laser output on account of dye photodegradation resulting in the loss of active dye molecules and the generation and accumulation of reaction products that introduce a loss at the laser and pump wavelengths has been theoretically simulated in terms of a time dependent rate equation model. Our experimental observations have been found to be in good agreement with our theoretical estimates. We have also investigated the deterioration in the performance of a copper vapour laser pumped tunable dye laser with a high average power and a high repetition rate operating over an extended period of time. Our theoretical model, when suitably modified, provided useful estimates for the extent of deterioration in laser performance of such a dye laser with a high average power and a high repetition rate on account of photodegradation of the active dye molecules. PACS 42.55.Mv; 42.60.By; 42.70.Hj     

Dual-wavelength operation of two coupled dye lasers

The analysis of the influence of an intracavity absorbing dye cell on the spectral characteristics of a free running dye laser leads to the operation of two coupled dye lasers. A powerful flashlamp-pumped dye ring laser pumps a secondary intracavity dye laser with a conversion efficiency of 30 %. Both wavelengths are independently tunable and cover the spectral range from 580 nm to 652 nm in the case of the dye combination rhodamine 6G and cresyl violet.     

Generation of nearly transform-limited pulses in subnanosecond region with TEA nitrogen-laser-pumped dye laser

A dye laser is transversely pumped by a TEA nitrogen laser with 700 ps duration. The dye laser pulse has a spectral linewidth of 0.007 nm and a pulse width of ≈ 140 ps, giving a time-bandwidth product of 1.5. It is pointed out that the fluorescence lifetime of the laser dye plays an important role in generation of laser emission using a long laser cavity under subnanosecond pulse pumping.     

10 ps High Power Laser System at 248 nm

A simple 10 ps KrF laser system consisting of quenched dye laser oscillator pumped by a XeCl laser, a distributed feedback dye laser (DFDL), a three-stage dye amplifier and a two-stage KrF amplifier are described. The output of the laser system is 140 mJ with 10 ps pulse width by using polarization-multiplexing amplification. A focused output laser intensity of about 4×1015 W/cm2 is obtained. The saturation fluence for KrF laser is obtained with this laser.     

10 ps High Power Laser System at 248 nm

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Power output coupling in a dye laser pumped by a nitrogen laser

A simple model for the operation of a pulsed dye laser, transversely pumped by a nitrogen laser, is presented. We consider the combined effect of the transmission of the laser output coupler, its distance from the dye cell and the saturated gain characteristics of the dye laser medium, on the operation of the laser. Experimental results are interpreted in terms of this model.     

An experimental study and theoretical analysis of the mode characteristics of a narrow line-width,pulsed dye laser oscillator at different pump powers

This paper presents an experimental study and theoretical analysis on the effect of pump power on the divergence, pointing, line-width and wavelength stability of a narrow line-width, high repetition rate dye laser oscillator. The dye laser oscillator, based on the hybrid multiple-prism grazing-incidence grating cavity, was pumped by copper vapor laser (CVL). The dye laser mode characteristics were studied at CVL average pump powers of 2, 4 and 8 W. The single pulse dye laser divergence/pointing stability was studied by far-field intensity distributions. The line-width and wavelength stability were studied using a high resolution wave-meter. The experimental results were theoretically analyzed in terms of dye laser mode structure drift induced by beam pointing instability, beam divergence and thermally induced optical path length fluctuation. A comprehensive theoretical treatment on pointing stability of dye laser beam and its influence in the dye laser wavelength stability is presented. The theoretical and experimental trends were found to be in good agreement.     

Study of synchronously mode-locked and internally frequency-doubledcw dye laser

The analysis of the characteristics of a synchronously mode-locked and internally frequency-doubled dye laser is presented. Dependence of dye laser pulse characteristics on the cavity length mismatch of the pump laser and dye laser is studied. Variation of the minimum pulsewidth with intracavity bandwidth and the harmonic conversion efficiency is presented in the form of graphs.     

New efficient laser dye for pulsed and CW operation in the UV

A new laser dye for pulsed and cw operation has been synthesized which can be tuned from 362 nm up to 412 nm. For pulsed excitation with a XeCl excimer laser an energy conversion of 18.5% has been measured at the tuning maximum of the dye; this is the highest efficiency for any known dye in the UV. For cw operation a low laser threshold and a goof efficiency have been observed. The range of tuned cw dye lasers is extended by 30 nm to shorter wavelengths. The dye shows high photochemical stability even at high pump laser power.     

多孔硅／激光染料复合体的发光

将激光染料分子有效地嵌入多孔硅中，获得多孔硅／染料分子复合体，嵌入微量梁料分子时，复合体的发光兼有多孔硅和激光染料两者的发光特征，增加染料分子的嵌入量，复合体的发光增强，荧光的时间响应快、脉宽窄，主要表面为激光染料的发光特性。     

染料激光放大器最佳增益长度研究

在横向泵浦脉冲染料激光器中,虑及染料激发态在激光波长处的吸收,根据稳态运转转条件,应用极值原理,给出其最佳增益与染料长度的关系式。     

Polarization and power characteristics of pulsed dye lasers with transverse pumping

Starting from the classical theory on molecular luminescence in liquids, rate equation for two-polarization-mode laser oscillation under transverse pumping with intense excitation have been set forth neglecting the influence of orientational relaxation of the dye molecules. Hence, the laser output power and polarization under different configurations have been obtained. The results show that the dye laser is partially polarized even when the pump beam is unpolarized and no polarizing elements exist in the cavity. If we define a reference plane consisting of the axes of the pump beam and the dye laser, the laser system has to adopt the plane perpendicular to the reference plane as the polarization direction in order to yield a highly efficient, linearly polarized laser output. Experiments on a copper-vapor laser pumped dye laser verified these analytical results.     

Influence of dye gain medium flow on the wavelength jitter and the drift of high repetition rate—Single mode dye lasers

This paper presents the effect of the flow of the dye gain medium on the wavelength jitter (<30 s) and drift (≈10 min) of a single axial mode dye laser pumped by a copper vapor laser (5.5 kHz). The study was carried out using a wave-meter. The dye solution temperature was maintained to within ±0.1 °C to allow the influence of dye flow rate on the wavelength stability. For the investigated dye flow rate, varying from 1.4 to 2.8 lpm (with corresponding Reynolds number varying from 1975 to 3950), the dye laser wavelength jitter reduced from ±0.15 pm (±130 MHz) to ±0.08 pm (±70 MHz) and drift rate reduced from 1.0 to 0. 2 MHz/s. However for flows beyond 1.7 lpm, random fluctuations in dye laser wavelength were observed. The observed behavior was linked to the flow related variation of angular spread and angular drift of the dye laser beam circulating in the cavity. This was revealed by an exhaustive study of the long term (≈10 min) divergence and pointing stability of the single mode dye laser output beams for different dye media flows.     

染料激光放大器最佳增益长度研究

在横向泵浦脉冲染料激光器中,虑及染料激发态在激光波长处的吸收,根据稳态运转转条件,应用极值原理,给出其最佳增益与染料长度的关系式。     

Temporal dynamics of high repetition rate pulsed single longitudinal mode dye laser

Theoretical and experimental studies of temporal dynamics of grazing incidence grating (GIG) cavity, single-mode dye laser pumped by high repetition rate copper vapour laser (CVL) are presented. Spectral chirp of the dye laser as they evolve in the cavity due to transient phase dynamics of the amplifier gain medium is studied. Effect of grating efficiency, focal spot size, pump power and other cavity parameters on the temporal behaviour of narrow band dye laser such as build-up time, pulse shape and pulse width is studied using the four level dye laser rate equation and photon evolution equation. These results are compared with experimental observations of GIG single-mode dye laser cavity. The effect of pulse stretching of CVL pump pulse on the temporal dynamics of the dye laser is studied.     

CW dye laser operation at 200 W pump power

A continuously operating jet stream dye laser was pumped by a multiwavelength-multimode argon-ion-laser with a pump power up to 200 W. Rhodamine 6G-chloride was dissolved in a water-polyvinylalcohol-ammonyx solution. The dye laser was prism-tunable between 560 and 650 nm with maximum output power at 600 nm. The maximum output power of the cw dye laser was 43 W without tuning element and 33 W with a prism placed inside the cavity. Operation of a jet stream dye laser with a pump power higher than 200 W and an efficiency of about 30% seems to be possible.     

Measurement of flow fluctuations in single longitudinal mode pulsed dye laser

A simple technique had been demonstrated for measuring flow-induced fluctuations in the single longitudinal mode (SLM) pulsed dye laser. Two prominent frequency components of 10.74 Hz and 48.83 Hz were present in the output of the Nd:YAG-pumped SLM dye laser. The flow-induced frequency component of 48.83 Hz was present due to the revolution per minute of the motor attached to the magnetically coupled gear pump. The time average bandwidth of 180 MHz has been obtained for this SLM dye laser. The effect of pump pulse energy on the bandwidth of the SLM dye laser was studied. The bandwidth of the SLM dye laser was increased to 285 MHz from 180 MHz, when the pump pulse energy was increased to 0.75 mJ from 0.15 mJ for a constant dye flow velocity of 0.5 m/s.     

Continuous-wave solid-state dye laser

We report the first realization of a cw solid-state dye laser. The laser medium consists of a laser dye (Rhodamine 6G) dissolved in a photopolymer. The UV-cured solution is sandwiched between two DVD substrates. The resonator design was derived from a conventional liquid solvent dye laser geometry. The laser radiation can be tuned from 565 to 615 nm by using a birefringent filter. A pump power of 2 W leads to a cw output power of more than 20 mW.