The stability of the active medium of RF-exited CO2 lasers with gold as catalyst

Using mass-spectrometric investigations the gas composition of the active medium of sealed-off cw RF-excited CO₂ waveguide lasers have been studied. It has been found that a low degree of CO₂ dissociation and a laser power improvement can be achieved by means of a gold catalyst in the laser discharge volume. The conditions for long operational lifetimes of these lasers are described. Received: 21 December 1999 / Revised version: 1 May 2000 / Published online: 6 September 2000     

Indigenous development of a 2 kW RF-excited fast axial flow CO<Subscript>2</Subscript> laser

RF-excited fast axial flow CO₂ lasers in kilowatt regime are presently being used for various new scientific applications in addition to laser material processing because of its versatility and superior beam quality. We have indigenously developed a compact 2 kW RF-excited fast axial flow CO₂ laser with moderate beam quality. In this paper the key design features of the laser and the associated high power capacitively coupled RF excitation technique are discussed in detail. Operational characteristics of this system are described along with the experimental findings.     

射频激励相移阵列谐振腔波导CO2 激光器输出特性研究

In this paper, an optical array resonator with phase-shifting end mirror has been combined with the RF-excited diffusively cooled slab waveguide CO₂ lasers to obtain a desirable output laser beam with single-peaked far-field intensity distribution, which is highly spatially suppressed with the merits of high brightness and good characteristics of propagation. In the experiments, a maximum output power of 46 W and highest conversion efficiency of 11.3% have been obtained from a 200-mm-gain-length device. The laser beam intensity distribution acquired has similar characteristics to the ouptut beam from laser arrays due to the periodical structure of the phase-shifting total reflector, and has an excellent stability due to the mode-selection capability of this type of resonator. In this paper, theoretical analysis is also given, based on which corresponding theoretical model is established, the practical feasibility is shown, and the laser beam output with characteristics of in-phase array mode is predicted. The systematical experimental investigation indicates the prominent influence of the parameters of the phase-shifting array end mirror on the property of the output beam. Furthermore, the manufacturing errors of the phase-shifted array resonator are analyzed and the analysis provides a theoretical guide to the design of this type of lasers.     

射频激励相移阵列谐振腔波导CO2激光器输出特性研究

为保持器件结构紧凑型的同时获得稳定的高功率、高光束质量激光输出,将相移光学阵列谐振腔技术用于射频激励扩散型冷却板条波导CO₂激光器．实验发现,该设计方案虽然波导结构为矩形宽波导,但是由于采用了具有相移阵列结构的全反射镜,获得的激光束输出空间分布具有阵列输出光束的基本特征．在波导截面为1mm×20mm、增益介质长度为20cm的波导结构条件下,获得了46W的激光功率输出和11.3%的电光转换效率．激光束输出的远场空间分布呈空间压缩的极锐单峰．由于该结构具有的选模特性,远场为单峰空间分布特 关键词：     

脉冲CO2激光器注入锁定特性的数值模拟

扩展了脉冲CO2激光器的多频动力学理论。将多频动力学模型中的光强方程用光场方程代替,建立了脉冲CO2激光器注入锁定的理论计算模型。采用四阶经典龙格库塔(Runge-Kutta)算法,计算了不同注入信号强度和失谐频率下的激光输出功率、瞬时频率和增益系数。研究了注入锁定宽调谐横向激励大气压(TEA)CO2激光器模式锁定的稳定性问题。研究结果表明,当频率偏离谱线中心600 MHz时,为了实现稳定的模式锁定所需要的注入信号强度应比在谱线中心处高出两个数量级。理论结果和已发表的实验数据符合得很好。研究进一步预示:当激光器气压增大至10倍大气压时,对于同样调谐范围所需的注入信号强度仅比在谱线中心处高出10%左右。     

条形半导体激光器光束质量因子M2的理论计算

通过一个二维半矢量模型求得纯折射率导引脊形波导和掩埋波导这两种常见平面条形半导体激光器波导结构的模式光场分布，现通过描述光束传播的非傍轴矢量二阶矩，通过平面波谱的方法获得激光器出射光束在横向和侧向上的束腰、远场发散角和M^2因子。讨论了波导结构参量变化对M^2因子的影响，并对两种波导结构光束的性质与波导参量的关系进行了比较。     

The waveguide laser: A review

The present article reviews the fundamental physical principles essential to an understanding of waveguide gas and liquid lasers, and the current technological state of these devices. At the present time, waveguide laser transitions span the visible through submillimeter regions of the wavelength spectrum. The introduction discusses the many applications of waveguide lasers and the wide variety of laser configurations that are possible. Section 1 summarizes the properties of modes in hollow dielectric waveguides of circular, rectangular, and planar cross section. Section 2 considers various approaches to optical feedback including internal and external mirror Fabry-Perot type resonators, hollow waveguide distributed feedback structures, and ring-resonant configurations. Section 3 discusses those aspects of molecular kinetic and laser theory pertinent to the design and optimization of waveguide gas lasers such as the scaling laws for discharge-excited gas lasers, molecular models useful in maximizing the oscillation bandwidth, the effects of gas flow rate, and the physics of optically-pumped far-infrared lasers. Finally, a review of the waveguide gas and liquid lasers reported to date is given in Section 4.     

眼睛安全激光器及军事应用

描述眼睛安全激光器的发展近况及军事应用。详细介绍眼睛安全的激光测距机。所述眼睛安全激光器包括CO_2激光器、GaAs半导体二极管激光器、Q开关Er玻璃激光器、Nd:YAG喇曼激光器、中红外激光器和KPT光学参量振荡器。     

High-power high beam-quality multi-waveguide CO<Subscript>2</Subscript> amplifiers

The results from modeling the energy characteristics of a multi-waveguide power amplifier are presented. The optical schemes and calculations for the most promising circuits of multichannel waveguide CO₂ amplifiers are given. The amplifying system itself removes the problem of phase locking in individual channels of multichannel systems. The experimental results from the synchronization of arrays of multichannel waveguide CO₂ lasers allow the production of high-power (up to 15 kW) high beam-quality multibeam lasers. Technological lasers with such properties have yet to be produced anywhere in the world.     

高功率平面波导激光器研究进展及分析

平面波导激光器的激光介质既能实现大模体积运转,又在一维方向起到波导作用从而获得高光束质量激光输出,近年来成为高平均功率固体激光器的重要研究方向之一。对国内外平面波导激光器的研究进展进行了归纳总结,对比和分析了平面波导的双包层波导结构、梯形波导结构和自成像结构等结构特点,分析了平面波导结构的发展及趋势,并提出了平面波导激光器发展成为高功率激光器的一些限制因素。     

TEA CO2激光器输出平顶模按厄米-高斯模的展开

TEA CO2激光器输出光束的能量密度分布一般为平顶型分布.为了给研究和分析TEA CO2激光器输出光束提供一种新的处理方法,采用FGB理论,对实验测量的一台TEA CO2激光器输出的实际平顶型光斑的能量密度分布按厄米-高斯函数进行了展开.根据展开结果,对TEA CO2激光器输出光束的空间分布特性进行了分析与讨论.初步证实了TEA CO2激光器输出光束的能量密度分布可以按厄米-高斯函数展开.     

射频激励二氧化碳激光器功率控制电路原理及设计

所叙述的二氧化碳激光器内部的基本结构。包括功率控制器、射频电路等。通过对功率控制部分的研制使激光器的生产逐步实现国产化。用单片机控制电路的PWM的开关、放大、检测，将放大后的PWM送至射频激励，控制射频电路中的射频信号，从而控制激光器输出光功率的大小。     

Spectroscopic detection of methane by use of guided-wave diode-pumped difference-frequency generation

We report spectroscopic gas detection by the use of mid-infrared difference-frequency mixing of two diode lasers in a channel waveguide. The waveguide was fabricated by annealed proton exchange in periodically poled lithium niobate. We generated 3.43-3.73-mum tunable radiation in a single waveguide at room temperature by mixing diode lasers near 780 and 1010 nm. High-resolution spectra of methane were obtained in 2 s with electronically controlled frequency scans of 45 GHz. The use of highly efficient waveguide frequency converters pumped by fiber-coupled diode lasers will permit construction of compact, solid-state, room-temperature mid-infrared sources for use in trace-gas detection.     

Manufacturing of Nd:Gd3Ga5O12 ridge waveguide lasers by pulsed laser deposition and ultrafast laser micromachining

Laser radiation is used both for the deposition of the laser active thin films and for the micro structuring to define wave guiding structures for the fabrication of waveguide lasers. Thin films of crystalline and amorphous neodymium doped Gd₃Ga₅O₁₂ are grown on single crystal yttrium aluminium garnet by pulsed laser deposition using excimer laser radiation.Manufacturing of the laser active waveguides by micro structuring is done using femtosecond laser ablation of the deposited films. The structural and optical properties of the films and the morphology of the structured waveguides are determined in view of the design and the fabrication of compact and efficient diode pumped waveguide lasers. The resulting waveguides are polished, provided with resonator mirrors, pumped using diode lasers and the waveguide lasers are characterized. The spectroscopic properties of the amorphous waveguide are investigated and an infrared waveguide laser is demonstrated. To our knowledge, there have been no reports by other groups of the successful operation of a structured waveguide laser fabricated by this technique or of a waveguide laser made from amorphous neodymium doped Gd₃Ga₅O₁₂.     

InGaAs/InGaAlAs Strain-compensated Multiple-quantum-well Lasers with Improved Temperature Characteristic

It is reported on realization of pulsed operation of InGaAs/InGaAlAs strain-compensated multiple-quantum-well lasers at room temperatures. The working wavelength is 1.56 μm;the threshold current density for the stripe waveguide lasers is less than 1.85 kA/cm2;for the ridge waveguide lasers,the threshold current is 35 mA. The incorporation of compensated strain,which makes the multiple-quantum-well design applicable,leads to an obvious improvement on device temperature characteristic.     

InGaAs/InGaAlAs Strain-compensated Multiple-quantum-well Lasers with Improved Temperature Characteristic

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Compact solid-state waveguide lasers operating in the pulsed regime: a review [Invited]

Over the last years, there has been tremendous progress with compact pulsed lasers based on various solid-state gain media, such as crystals and glasses doped with laser-active ions. With the integration of increasingly diverse saturable absorber materials, these small sources are capable of delivering stable pulses with durations as short as femtoseconds and repetition rates exceeding 10 GHz. These promising sources are known as solid-state waveguide lasers, which have become synonymous with miniaturization, integration, and functionality.This article overviews the progress in the development of passively Q-switched and mode-locked solid-state waveguide lasers employing diverse saturable absorbers. The most commonly used laser configurations,state-of-the-art waveguide fabrication techniques, and experimental demonstrations of pulsed waveguide lasers are summarized and reviewed. Selected well-noted topics, which may shape the future directions in this field, are also presented.     

Planar waveguide lasers and structures created by laser ablation — an overview

The parameters of planar and channel waveguide lasers fabricated by different techniques are reviewed. Materials and properties of thin films used for creation of planar waveguide lasers are summarized. The parameters of active and passive planar waveguides created by the method of pulsed laser deposition and problems of laser deposition are described. The aspects of laser generation of planar waveguide lasers, resonators and channel waveguides are presented. The results of our experiments of laser deposition of thin Ti:sapphire layers and thin layers of Nd:YAG and Nd:YAP are briefly discussed. This work was supported by the grant of Czech Grant Agency No. 102/96/0429.     

Radio frequency excited waveguide CO2 lasers on sequence-band transitions

2 lasers based on either a quartz or an alumina waveguide were studied on the 00°2 - [10°1,02°1]_I,II sequence bands. A compact multisegment RF excitation with capacitive coupling was used for pumping the gain section of the laser waveguide. The use of a separate intracavity hot CO₂ waveguide suppresses the regular-band transitions. The quartz waveguide laser has a total of 62 lines lasing on both the 9.4 and 10.4 μm sequence bands. The alumina waveguide laser has 40 lines lasing on the 10.4 μm sequence band. These lasers can be either pulsed or continuous-wave (CW) operated on the selected line without a line jumping problem. Received: 29 September 1997/Revised version: 2 December 1997     

Novel technology and performance of a high-power CO2 waveguide laser

Several new techniques have been developed to solve the problems encountered in the design and construction of rugged, reliable, high-power, CO₂ waveguide lasers. High-power single transverse mode output requires long single- or multiple-folded waveguide paths to be created in a dense ceramic body. The limitations of extruded or drilled bores have been overcome by fabricating the waveguide in two halves which are subsequently bonded together with a glaze or by thermodiffusion to form a vacuum-tight assembly. Several lasers have been constructed by these methods, one such device giving over 10 W CW output is described. These techniques can be readily extended to larger, higher-power devices. Reliable seals between semiconductor optics and metals using pure In soldering have also been developed for clean “hard seal” assembly. Dissociation of the CO₂ gas can lead to rapid decline in output power. The effects can be reduced by attaching a reservoir to the laser, or more preferably by the incorporation of a catalyst to reverse the reaction. These techniques have been applied to sealed-off CO₂ waveguide lasers which have demonstrated 5 yr shelf life and up to 5000 h operating life.