Rapid wavelength scanning based on acousto-optically tuned external-cavity laser diode

High-speed, wide-range wavelength scanning is demonstrated using a laser diode with an antireflection coating and an external cavity employing an acousto-optic deflector. The narrow spectral width of 0.2 nm observed in the experiment indicates the availability of a highly coherent laser beam. The scanning range of 15 nm under rapid modulation is confirmed in the prototype system. A tuning rate of more than 100 kHz is achieved without any mode hops. To the best of our knowledge, no such high-speed wavelength tuning based on an acousto-optical configuration has been demonstrated thus far.     

Effects of temperature on laser diode ignition

In this paper, the effects of temperature on laser diode ignition and the resulting consequences were discussed in detail through theoretical analysis, experiments and numerical calculations. The results indicated that the output power of laser diode decreases and the wavelength of laser redshifts with elevated working temperature under a certain condition. The threshold conditions of ignition for powders are easily satisfied with increase in ambient temperature. While the temperature reaches a high enough level, ignition can occur and also the self-combustion or thermal induced explosion can do, even if laser power is very low. Therefore, it is of great importance to carefully control the working temperature of laser diode and the ambient temperature of powder system, and in the meanwhile, to install necessary insurance apparatus in order to ensure the normal and safe operation of the ignition system.     

线性调频半导体激光器实现大尺寸静态、动态测距

提高大型机电设备的加工水平，动态在线测量是关键。将线性调频半导体激光器应用于动态测量，对目标的位置及移动的速度、加速度等实现准实时测量，可对加工过程实现动态补偿；依靠系统的自校准，消除半导体激光器的老化对激光波长的影响，使得测量精度得以保证，进而使其实用化成为可能；待测的参数是拍频的频率，即测量精度与半导体激光器的输出光功率无关，加之频率是数字量，便于和微机相连组成自动测控系统。系统静态相对测量精度为３×１０－４。整个测量系统体积小、结构简单，便于实现生产和现场安装，可广泛应用于大型机电设备的静态、动态测量。     

Statistics of the self-mixing speckle interference in a laser diode and its application to the measurement of flow velocity

The statistical analysis of self-mixing speckles interference using Fabry-Perot cavity is described based on the theory of the speckle and the self-mixing interference in a laser diode. Speckle signal processing based on Fourier transform is presented in this paper. The linear dependence between the spectrum mean frequency and velocity of solution is given by simulation and proved by experiment. The experimental results show that this speckle signal processing can be used to measure velocity of target.     

Influence of injection patterns on chaos synchronization performance between a multimode laser diode and a single-mode laser

In this paper, based on a system composed of a multimode emitted laser diode and a single-mode received laser, chaos synchronization performance has been investigated numerically under different optical injection patterns. The results show that, for single mode injection (SMI) which means the received laser is injected by a selective longitudinal mode of the multimode emitted laser whose wavelength corresponds to that of the single-mode received laser, the system synchronization performance is better than that with multi mode injection (MMI); depending on the optical spectrum of the received laser, the physical mechanism of chaos synchronization deterioration for MMI is given. Additionally, after taking into account the parameter mismatches, the chaos synchronization performance of the system with different injection pattern have also been discussed. For either SMI or MMI, the synchronization performance with negative parameter mismatches is better than that with positive parameter mismatches.     

Common black coatings – reflectance and ageing characteristics in the 0.32–14.3 μm wavelength range

The diffuse and regular reflectances of five optically absorbing coatings frequently used in optical systems, were measured over the 0.32–14.3 μm wavelength range, before and after exposure to heat and intense optical radiation. The measured coatings included Nextel Velvet Black, an anodised coating and NPL Super Black. The anodised coating exhibited substantial variations in its diffuse and regular reflectance values after thermal and simulated solar ageing. Solar and thermal ageing of the Nextel Velvet Black resulted in increases of its reflectance. However, thermal ageing tended to decrease the reflectance of the other paint samples examined. Thermal and solar ageing of the NPL Super Black resulted in only minor changes in its reflectance characteristics. All measurements are traceable to the UK National Standards.     

Measurement of thermal rise-time of a laser diode based on spectrally resolved waveforms

Thermal resistance and thermal rise-time are two basic parameters that affect most of the performances of a laser diode greatly. By measuring waveforms received after a spectroscope at wavelengths varied step-by-step, the spectrally resolved waveforms can be converted to calculate the thermal rise-time. Basic formulas for the spectrum variation of a laser diode and the measurement set-up by using a Boxcar are described in the paper. As an example, the thermal rise-time of a p-side up packaged short-pulse laser diode was measured by the method to be 390 μs. The method will be useful in characterizing diode lasers and LD modules in high-power applications.     

Theoretical analysis on phase-locking properties of a laser diode array facing an external cavity

External coupling model has been used to describe the output field of a laser diode array (LDA) phase-locked with an external cavity. The analytical solution for the coupling matrix equation of the phase-locked system has been obtained. The dependencies of the threshold gain, g_j of the system mode on the residue reflection of the front facet, r_f and round trip external cavity lengths, L have been discussed. The working lengths of the external cavity for stably phase-locking the LDA of different residual reflectivities have been calculated.     

Sinusoidal phase-modulating laser diode interferometer insensitive to the intensity modulation of the light source

In a conventional sinusoidal phase-modulating laser-diode (SPM-LD) interferometer, the wavelength of the LD is sinusoidally modulated by varying its injection current. However, the intensity modulation is associated with the wavelength modulation, which affects the measurement accuracy. We propose an SPM-LD interferometer insensitive to the intensity modulation of the light source, in which the influence of the intensity modulation is eliminated by choosing the appropriate sinusoidal phase modulation depth. Computer simulations and experiments are performed for real-time displacement measurement with the proposed SPM-LD interferometer. The measurement accuracy has been improved and the measurement repeatability is less than 1 nm. No additional components are required in our proposed method that leads to a simple system compared with the other previously proposed methods.     

阵列半导体激光器的光束参数测量与光纤耦合

采用ISO推荐的方法测量了发光面为 1μm× 15 0 μm的阵列半导体激光器的光束半径、远场发散角、束腰位置、瑞利长度 ,并根据测量结果计算了光束传输因子 (M2 因子 )。以此为基础 ,研究了半导体激光器光束的快轴准直以及光纤耦合技术 ,采用微柱面透镜准直后 ,阵列半导体激光器快轴方向发散角可减小到 0 .48°。设计了光纤耦合光学系统 ,与 10 0 μm光纤耦合时的耦合效率为 71.0 % ,与 2 0 0 μm光纤耦合时的效率为 83.4%。     

闪耀光栅阵列用于半导体激光器列阵光束整形

介绍了半导体激光器列阵的光束整形理论,设计并制作了由两个闪耀光栅阵列构成的整形光学系统,理论计算表明该系统能将激光器快、慢轴方向的光参数积变为5.7 mm·mrad和8.9 mm·mrad.在整形实验中测得变换后快、慢轴方向的光参数积分别为12 mm·mrad和9.5 mm·mrad,经透镜聚焦后能够实现与芯径200 μm,数值孔径0.22的光纤耦合.     

The ultrahigh resolution and sensitivity by spectral measurement on the basis of the ring laser

The laser gyroscope technique on the basis of the gas ring laser at use in the spectral dispersive and absorptive analysis of substance allows attaining to the ultrahigh frequency resolution (about 10⁻¹⁶ and less). Experimental check of a method is realized on the basis of air research on dispersive dependence.     

Performance analysis of wavelength conversion using a light-injected laser diode based on improved rate equations

The extinction and signal to noise ratios, the two main figures-of-merit for a wavelength converted signal are analyzed on the basis of the improved rate equations. The model accurately considers the mutual coupling parameter β_m which indicates the efficiency of the wavelength conversion. A simple relationship among extinction ratio, signal to noise ratio and the mutual coupling parameter β_m is given. With the simulation results, we find that the high extinction and signal to noise ratios depends on higher pump (i.e. original) power, optimum probe (i.e. converted) power and less wavelength spacing between them, which is in accordance with the analysis of mutual coupling parameter β_m.     

A vision measurement model of laser displacement sensor and its calibration method

Laser displacement sensors (LDSs) use a triangulation measurement model in general. However, the non-linearity of the triangulation measurement model influences the measurement accuracy of the LDS, and the geometric parameters calibration process of the components of the LDS is tedious. In this paper, we present a vision measurement model of the LDS based on the perspective projection principle. Furthermore, a corresponding calibration method is proposed. A planar target with featured lines is moved by a 2D moving platform to some preset known positions. At each position, the world coordinates of calibration points are obtained by the cross ratio invariance principle and the linear array camera of the LDS is used for collecting target images. The simulations verify the effectiveness of the proposed model and the feasibility of the calibration method. The experimental results indicate that the calibration method achieves a calibration accuracy of 0.026 mm. Compared with the traditional measurement model, the vision measurement model of the LDS is more comprehensive and avoids a linear approximation procedure, and the corresponding calibration method is easily complemented.     

The effect of laser peak power and pulse width on the hole geometry repeatability in laser percussion drilling

In this work, the two main factors that influence the repeatability of the laser percussion drilling process are identified. Experimental parametric analysis was carried out to correlate the laser parameters with the repeatability of a laser percussion drilling process. The experiment was conducted using a flash lamp pumped Nd:YAG laser to drill 2 mm thick mild steel sheets. The relationship between the percentage standard deviation (PSD) of entrance hole diameter, hole circularity and the operating parameters is established. Thirty-five holes were drilled and analysed for each set of identical laser parameters. The PSD of entrance hole diameter ranges between 1.47% and 4.78% for an operating window of 3.5–7 kW peak power, and 1–3 ms pulse width. The circularity of the entrance hole (defined as the ratio between the minimum and maximum diameters of the hole) ranges from 0.94 to 0.87, and is found to correlate with repeatability. The work shows that higher peak power, and shorter pulse width gives better hole geometry repeatability. The effect of melt ejection on hole geometry repeatability is also investigated. Melt ejection and spatter formation have been found to contribute to the poor repeatability of the process.     

An airborne diode laser spectrometer for the simultaneous measurement of H2O and HNO3 content of stratospheric cirrus clouds

We describe a tunable diode laser spectrometer for the in situ simultaneous detection of the nitric acid and the water vapour by means of high resolution absorption spectroscopy on rovibronic lines, using a single laser emitting in the mid-infrared (5.8 μm) and a multipass cell. The instrument was designed to be installed on a high altitude aircraft, as a part of a composite payload for atmospheric aerosol studies. The instrument design criteria are discussed and the expected performances are compared with results of laboratory and field operation. Due to the high chemical activity of HNO₃, that makes difficult to use a reference cell, a fast sweep detection of direct absorption was used for the measurement. An absorption sensitivity of about 2×10⁻⁴ was achieved with an integration time of 2.5 s, corresponding to a concentration of about 4 ppb of HNO₃ in the cell and 0.1 ppb in the external aerosol. The data acquisition and processing techniques, based on the full molecular lineshape fitting are also shown and discussed, including some examples of the data acquired during the scientific flights.     

Modeling, measuring, and minimizing the instrument response function of a tunable diode laser spectrometer

The instrument response function (IRF) of a spectrometer limits the accuracy of measured spectroscopic parameters by broadening recorded spectral lines/features. We describe methods to model the effects of the IRF on spectral data, to minimize the IRF widths, and to measure the resulting width of the spectrometer IRF. We have modeled the IRF of our Tunable Diode Laser Spectrometer as a Voigt function. A real-time method of eliminating the effects of low-frequency spectrometer drift has been implemented and has resulted in a substantial reduction in the width of the IRF, its residual Gaussian component reduced from about to about . An accurate measurement of the IRF Gaussian width utilizes a computationally simple method making use of the spectral dependence of the RMS noise of each signal-averaged data point. Various noise sources affecting the spectrometer (preamp/detector noise, laser AM noise, and laser FM noise) are identified and separately quantified by use of the same method. The IRF Gaussian-width measurement can be automatically applied to each measured spectrum of an experimental data set. A related method is discussed which allows accurate determination of the spectral dependence of statistical noise appropriate for use in quantitative Chi-square fitting of absorption spectra. We explore simple, efficient numerical processes which can dramatically enhance the quality and usefulness of acquired spectral data, improving the ability to apply TDL spectroscopy to high-precision, quantitative measurements and the determination of detailed spectroscopic lineshape parameters. This paper provides a guide for interested readers to implement these developments in their own spectrometers.     

Displacement measurement with adjustable range by use of the photoelectromotive force effect and a frequency-modulated laser diode

We demonstrate a scheme for displacement measurement by use of the photoelectromotive force effect and a frequency-modulated laser diode. The measurement range can be adjusted by a change in the depth of frequency modulation, thus making the measurement method both simple and versatile.     

激光法红外热像镜组中心偏测量与调校研究

论述了多镜片成像光学镜组中心偏的理论表征 ,以及自准反射旋转法测量中心偏的原理。设计了用于红外光学镜组的中心偏检测系统。系统包括用于 8～ 14 μm红外光学系统中心偏测量的CO2 激光 ;可调焦望远镜 ;采用TGS热释电热像仪与计算机配合的数据读出及处理系统 ;径向跳动≤ 1μm ,轴向晃动≤ 1″的高精密基准轴工作台。系统测量中心偏精度为 :角度≤ 2″ ,线度≤ 0 .0 2mm。给出了中心偏数据处理程序。系统也可用于在线装校 ,更换光源 (用He Ne激光代替CO2 激光 )系统可用于 3～ 5 μm红外光学系统的测量。进一步改进并利用激光的相干特性 ,系统可实现中心偏测量精度≤ 1μm。     

半导体激光器线阵的棱镜组光束整形器和光纤耦合输出

针对半导体激光器线阵输出光束快慢轴方向光参数积不对称问题,提出并制作了基于直角棱镜片的光束整形器,其具有结构简单紧凑,制作安装容易的特点。通过数值仿真和实验对光束整形器进行了分析,研究表明整形器实现了半导体激光器线阵输出光束的对称化,并且光束经过透镜聚焦后对数值孔径为0.46,直径为200μm的光纤进行耦合,效率为53%。