A review of Ni-like X-ray laser experiments undertaken using the VULCAN laser at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory

Recent progress using the VULCAN laser at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory to pump X-ray lasing in nickel-like ions is reviewed. Double pulse pumping with ∼100 ps pulses has been shown to produce significantly greater X-ray laser output than single pulses of duration 0.1–1 ns. With double pulse pumping, the main pumping pulse interacts with a pre-formed plasma created by a pre-pulse. The efficiency of lasing increases as there is a reduced effect of refraction of the X-ray laser beam due to smaller density gradients and larger gain volumes, which enable propagation of the X-ray laser beam along the full length of the target. The record shortest wavelength saturated laser at 5.9 nm has been achieved in Ni-like dysprosium using double pulse pumping of 75 ps duration from the VULCAN laser. A variant of the double pulse pumping using a single ∼100 ps laser pulse and a superimposed short ∼1 ps pulse has been found to further increase the efficiency of lasing by reducing the effects of over-ionisation during the gain period. The record shortest wavelength saturated laser pumped by a short ∼1 ps pulse has been achieved in Ni-like samarium using the VULCAN laser operating in chirped pulse amplified (CPA) mode. Ni-like samarium lases at 7.3 nm.     

High-energy single pulse and multi-spike operation with a passive polymer Q-switch

Stable highly efficient polymer passive switch based on a polyurethane composite and organic dye BDN were developed for the neodymium lasers. The maximum energy of 0.98 J was obtained for a single pulse at passive Q-switching of these lasers. Repetition of single pulses at 50 Hz was possible. Repetitively pulsed operation with a peak output power up to 2 MW and an energy of train of nanosecond pulses 14.1 J were achieved in an yttrium aluminate laser for the first time. Variation of the initial switch transmittance made it possible to vary the pulse (spike) duration in the range 28–90 ns. The maximum pulse repetition rate in a train was 350 kHz when the Q-switching efficiency was 98%. The damage threshold of the investigated polymer matrix was achieved 14 and 18 J/cm² for single pulse duration (15 and 35 ns correspondingly) and 52 J/cm² in multi-spike generation regime (duration 80 ns).     

放电引发的非链式高功率重复频率HF/DF激光器

高功率重频HF/DF激光因其具有的波长和功率优势成为当前中红外激光技术发展的热点之一。介绍了利用紫外预电离横向放电结构和工作气体循环系统建立的放电引发高功率重频HF/DF激光装置。在对激光工作介质SF6/C2H6混合气体放电特性和激光输出特性研究的基础上,开展了强电负性气体的重频均匀体放电技术和气体快速循环置换技术研究,解决了泵浦源重频放电能量在气体介质中的有效沉积和提取问题,实现了激光器50Hz的重频稳定运行和能量稳定输出,HF激光的平均功率达到28W,脉宽100ns,峰值功率5.6 MW。     

Versatile Raman fiber laser for sodium laser guide star

Robust high‐power narrow‐linewidth lasers at 589 nm are required for sodium laser guide star adaptive optics in astronomy. A high‐power 589 nm laser based on Raman fiber amplifier is reported here, which works in both continuous‐wave and pulsed formats. In the continuous‐wave case, the laser produces more than 50 W output. In the pulsed case, the same laser produces square‐shaped pulses with tunable repetition rate (500 Hz to 10 kHz) and duration (1 ms to 30 μs). The peak power is as high as 84 W and remains constant during the tuning. The laser also emits an adjustable sideband at 1.71 GHz away from the main laser frequency for better sodium excitation. The versatility of the laser offers much flexibility in laser guide star application.     

Development of an efficient coherent optical source at 6.04 μm

Efficiency as high as 26% is obtained for generation of mid-infrared radiation at 6.04 μm by frequency doubling of ammonia laser emission at 12.08 μm in a 15 mm long type-I cut AgGaSe₂ crystal. The NH₃ laser used for this work is optically pumped by a commercial TEA CO₂ laser operating on 9.22 μm and produces pulsed output of ∼210 mJ with a duration of ∼200 ns at 12.08 μm. The generated radiation at 6.04 μm is separated out from the residual radiation at 12.08 μm by exploiting the principle of polarization dependent diffraction of reflection grating.     

利用单模光纤中SBS效应进行被动调Q的掺铒光纤激光器研究

分析了利用光纤中的受激布里渊散射(SBS)相位共轭效应进行激光腔内调Q,产生ns量级脉冲激光的原理,并对利用该效应产生的激光脉冲波形和脉冲形成过程进行了数值模拟,得到的脉冲波形与SBS相位共轭反射率随时间变化曲线基本一致,表明利用光纤中的SBS相位共轭作用调Q具有可行性。据此,对采用单模光纤(SMF)作为SBS池的掺Er3＋调Q光纤激光器进行实验研究,当单模光纤长度为1.5 m时,在45 mW的抽运光功率下得到脉宽约2.6 ns,脉冲周期58.23 ns,平均功率7.35 mW的激光脉冲。进一步的研究表明：激光器中相位共轭镜的形成与SBS介质长度有关,SBS介质过长,斯托克斯线之间无固定的相位关系,不能形成相干叠加,SBS相位共轭腔不能形成; SBS介质过短,腔内正交偏振模光子寿命的改变使脉冲出现双峰现象。脉冲形成后其属性只与SBS动态属性有关。     

12 W Q-switched Er:ZBLAN fiber laser at 2.8 μm

A diode-pumped, actively Q-switched 2.8 μm fiber laser oscillator with an average output power of more than 12 W has been realized through the use of a 35 μm core erbium-doped ZBLAN fiber and an acousto-optic modulator; to our knowledge, this is the first 3 μm pulsed fiber laser in the 10 W class. Pulse energy up to 100 μJ and pulse duration down to 90 ns, corresponding to a peak power of 0.9 kW, were achieved at a repetition rate of 120 kHz.     

COLORATION EFFECT OF PULSED LASER ON WO3

When laser pulses irradiate the surface of the sample WO₃, an interesting coloration effect is obtained. Only by one pulse of XeCl laser irradiation (wavelength: 308 nm, pulse duration: 36 ns, output power: 100 mJ/pulse), a significant color change appears. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) shows that a partial reduction process of WO₃ occurs and conduction band electrons appears. X-ray diffraction pattern indicates that the lattice parameters of the colored samples are increased. A molten layer can be seen in scanning electron microscopy (SEM) image. It may be concluded that the coloration effect of pulsed laser undergoes a process different from that of electro- or photo- chromism, and may be attributed to thermochromism and substoichiometric WO₃ is formed. The coloration process is characterized by its high speed and stability.     

激光对金属壳密封装药点火的研究

 实验研究了重复频率脉冲YAG激光对金属壳密封装药点火以及由此造成的对结构破坏的机理和模式, 得到了金属壳内RDX、PETN炸药热爆炸或热爆燃所需激光作用时间与激光功率密度关系。初步的数值模拟结果表明, 炸药热点火所需激光作用时间与激光强度、光斑尺寸有明显的依赖关系。     

Ytterbium-doped fiber amplifier with tunable repetition rate and pulse duration

A pulsed master-oscillator power fiber amplifier (MOPFA) system based on Yb³⁺-doped large mode area (LMA) double-clad optical fiber was developed. The system generated pulses of changeable duration ranging from about 8.5 to 250.0 ns at the repetition rate of up to 500 kHz. The laser system emitted up to 22 W of average output power at the wavelength of 1064 nm.     

Nanosecond pulsed laser ablation of silicon in liquids

Laser fluence and laser shot number are important parameters for pulse laser based micromachining of silicon in liquids. This paper presents laser-induced ablation of silicon in liquids of the dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and the water at different applied laser fluence levels and laser shot numbers. The experimental results are conducted using 15 ns pulsed laser irradiation at 532 nm. The silicon surface morphology of the irradiated spots has an appearance as one can see in porous formation. The surface morphology exhibits a large number of cavities which indicates as bubble nucleation sites. The observed surface morphology shows that the explosive melt expulsion could be a dominant process for the laser ablation of silicon in liquids using nanosecond pulsed laser irradiation at 532 nm. Silicon surface’s ablated diameter growth was measured at different applied laser fluences and shot numbers in both liquid interfaces. A theoretical analysis suggested investigating silicon surface etching in liquid by intense multiple nanosecond laser pulses. It has been assumed that the nanosecond pulsed laser-induced silicon surface modification is due to the process of explosive melt expulsion under the action of the confined plasma-induced pressure or shock wave trapped between the silicon target and the overlying liquid. This analysis allows us to determine the effective lateral interaction zone of ablated solid target related to nanosecond pulsed laser illumination. The theoretical analysis is found in excellent agreement with the experimental measurements of silicon ablated diameter growth in the DMSO and the water interfaces. Multiple-shot laser ablation threshold of silicon is determined. Pulsed energy accumulation model is used to obtain the single-shot ablation threshold of silicon. The smaller ablation threshold value is found in the DMSO, and the incubation effect is also found to be absent.     

增益调制高重频脉冲光纤激光器实验研究

采用脉冲泵浦方案,研制出了基于增益调制技术的全光纤结构高重频脉冲激光器。采用电路直接调制的激光二极管作为泵浦源,双包层光纤作为增益介质,构造了光纤光栅选模的线形腔结构。实验中通过调整泵浦光脉冲宽度和光纤激光器谐振腔长度,得到了稳定的高重频脉冲。在100kHz重复频率下,采用21W的峰值泵浦功率和2.5μs的泵浦脉冲宽度,获得了1.06μm波长,脉冲宽度247ns的稳定脉冲激光输出。脉冲峰值功率一致性好,平均功率长期功率稳定性为2%。观察并分析了由于纵模拍频在脉冲包络上产生的次脉冲特性。通过一级放大实现89.6 W输出。     

条纹相机测量中的光束取样

从实验上探讨了用条纹相机测量大口径高功率固体激光束的脉冲波形时,取样光斑的大小对波形的精细结构与脉宽的影响。     

COLORATION EFFECT OF PULSED LASER ON WO3

When laser pulses irradiate the surface of the sample WO₃, an interesting coloration effect is obtained. Only by one pulse of XeCl laser irradiation (wavelength: 308 nm, pulse duration: 36 ns, output power: 100 mJ/pulse), a significant color change appears. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) shows that a partial reduction process of WO₃ occurs and conduction band electrons appears. X-ray diffraction pattern indicates that the lattice parameters of the colored samples are increased. A molten layer can be seen in scanning electron microscopy (SEM) image. It may be concluded that the coloration effect of pulsed laser undergoes a process different from that of electro- or photo- chromism, and may be attributed to thermochromism and substoichiometric WO₃ is formed. The coloration process is characterized by its high speed and stability.     

Photothermally controlled 50 mA gating in VO2-based planar device using NIR laser diode

By utilizing a near infrared laser diode as an excitation light source, we demonstrated a photothermally controlled current gating of 50 mA in a two-terminal planar device based on a vanadium dioxide (VO₂) thin film grown by a pulsed laser deposition method. The photothermally controlled on/off triggering of the device current was accomplished by controlling the output power of the laser beam that illuminated the VO₂ film. The transient responses of photothermally triggered currents were analyzed when periodical laser pulses from the laser diode stimulated the VO₂ device at a variety of pulse widths and repetition rates. A switching contrast between off-state and on-state currents was evaluated as ∼11905, and average rising and falling times were measured as ∼45 and ∼19 ms, respectively.     

Linearly polarized 100-kW-Peak-power pulsed fiber laser with a novel master oscillator

We report progress in the design and fabrication of a monolithic, linearly polarized, pulsed, Yb-doped fiber laser. This laser has a peak power of more than 100 kW, a tunable repetition rate from 100 kHz to 1 MHz, a tunable pulse duration from 2 ns to 2.5 μs, and a diffraction-limited, linearly polarized output beam with a mean power of 21 W and a wavelength of 1064 nm. A seed source that consists of a microchip Nd:YVO₄ laser and an electro optic deflector is developed. Using this source, the repetition rate and pulse duration are varied independently of each other. In addition, an excellent pulse-to-pulse repeatability is achieved.     

星光Ⅱ装置激光能量测量实时采集和数据传输系统

介绍一套激光能量实时采集和多路传输通信系统。该系统兼容现有的不同型号和规格的激光能量计,具有峰值保持和功率积分功能,抗干扰能力强,可实现数据自动采集、处理及长距离多点传送。为实现激光能量测量精密化和自动化打下了技术基础。     

Effect of Variations in the Gas-Dynamic Unloading on the Laser Initiation of the PETN–Aluminum Composite

Technical Physics - Thresholds of explosive decomposition Hcr under irradiation using the first harmonic of a pulsed neodymium laser (14 ns) are experimentally determined for pentaerythritol...     

Laser diode and pumped Cr:Yag passively Q-switched yellow-green laser at 543 nm

Efficient and compact yellow green pulsed laser output at 543 nm is generated by frequency doubling of a passively Q-switched end diode-pumped Nd:YVO₄ laser at 1086 nm under the condition of sup-pressing the higher gain transition near 1064 nm. With 15 W of diode pump power and the frequency doubling crystal LBO, as high as 1.58 W output power at 543 nm is achieved. The optical to optical conversion efficiency from the corresponding Q-switched fundamental output to the yellow green output is 49%. The peak power of the Q-switched yellow green pulse laser is up to 30 kW with 5 ns pulse duration. The output power stability over 8 hours is better than 2.56% at the maximum output power. To the best of our knowledge, this is the highest watt-level laser at 543 nm generated by frequency doubling of a passively Q-switched end diode pumped Nd:YVO₄ laser at 1086 nm.     

Efficient amplification of sub-picosecond pulses of a non-CW dye laser

Efficient amplification in a dye laser amplifier is investigated theoretically and experimentally. A five-level rate equation approach is considered including rotational relaxation of the dye molecules. The effects of the pump pulse duration and of the parameters of the input pulse are discussed. The results are compared with experimental data for 0.5 ps pulses of a pulsed dye laser. Conversion efficiencies >10% are achieved for a single pass amplifier using Nd:YAG pump pulses of 2 ns while an effective fluorescence lifetime of 1.7±0.2 ns is determined for the gain medium rhodamine 6G. The triple pass amplifier stage of the laser system achieves an energy conversion of 4% with 40 J output pulses.