摘要:
A laser system comprises: a seed oscillator, having a seed output; dispersive optics, operative to receive the seed output and divide the seed output into spectrally separate seed components; an array of individually addressable, phase adjustable laser amplifiers corresponding to the spectrally separate components, each laser amplifier receiving as its seed one of the spectrally separate seed components and producing one of the spectrally separate amplified components; and phase actuators controlling the individually addressable, phase adjustable laser amplifiers. A method of operating a laser system comprises: generating a seed signal; dividing the seed signal into spectrally separate component signals; amplifying the spectrally separate component signals; recombining the spectrally separate component signals into an amplified output; and controlling phases of the amplified spectrally separate component signals. Both single-pass and double-pass amplifier array versions are disclosed.
摘要:
A method and apparatus for providing a high peak power optical beam. The method includes interleaving pulse trains of different wavelengths and spatially and temporally overlapping the different wavelengths to produce an amplified output beam with very high peak power.
摘要:
A method and apparatus for two-dimensional wavelength beam combining of laser sources. In one example, an external cavity multi-wavelength laser includes an array of laser emitters each producing an optical beam having a specified wavelength, a grating stack comprising a plurality of first-order diffraction gratings arranged linearly in a first dimension, and a dispersive element. The laser further includes a cylindrical telescope that images the optical beams from the array of laser emitters onto the grating stack. A first cylindrical transform lens spatially overlaps the optical beams in a second dimension forming a first region of overlap at the grating stack. A second cylindrical transform lens spatially overlaps the optical beams from the grating stack in the first dimension forming a second region of overlap at the dispersive element. The dispersive element transmits a multi-wavelength output beam comprising the spatially overlapped optical beams from the array of laser emitters.
摘要:
The present invention also features an external cavity laser source that includes a free space external cavity comprising a laser array, an optical element, a dispersive element, and a partially reflecting element. The laser array comprises at least two optical gain elements where each of the at least two optical gain elements generate optical radiation having a unique wavelength. The optical element has a focal plane and is positioned to substantially place the focal plane at the at least two optical gain elements and to intercept the generated optical radiation. The dispersive element is positioned substantially at the focal plane of the optical element. The partially reflecting element is positioned to intercept radiation from the dispersive element. The partially reflecting element and the gain elements together forming the free space laser cavity that defines the at least first and second wavelength.
摘要:
A laser system comprises: a seed oscillator, having a seed output; dispersive optics, operative to receive the seed output and divide the seed output into spectrally separate seed components; an array of individually addressable, phase adjustable laser amplifiers corresponding to the spectrally separate components, each laser amplifier receiving as its seed one of the spectrally separate seed components and producing one of the spectrally separate amplified components; and phase actuators controlling the individually addressable, phase adjustable laser amplifiers. A method of operating a laser system comprises: generating a seed signal; dividing the seed signal into spectrally separate component signals; amplifying the spectrally separate component signals; recombining the spectrally separate component signals into an amplified output; and controlling phases of the amplified spectrally separate component signals. Both single-pass and double-pass amplifier array versions are disclosed.
摘要:
Coherent beam combining of laser gain elements achieves high output power in a diffraction limited beam. An active beam combining system coherently combines optical beams emitted by semiconductor laser gain elements in an external resonant cavity configuration. A beam combiner in the resonant cavity combines the outputs of the laser gain elements into a single coherent output beam whose power is monitored by a photodetector. A processor uses the photodetector's output to adjust the phases of the respective optical beams emitted by the laser gain elements so as to increase or maximize the coherent output beam's power. The processor may vary the optical beams' phases according to a stochastic parallel gradient descent (SPGD) algorithm for active phase control. Experimental results show a beam combining efficiency of 81% with an upper limit of 90% or higher and without the scaling limits imposed on passive-phasing systems.
摘要:
A method and apparatus for providing a high peak power optical beam. The method includes interleaving pulse trains of different wavelengths and spatially and temporally overlapping the different wavelengths to produce an amplified output beam with very high peak power.
摘要:
An external-cavity one-dimensional multi-wavelength beam combiner that performs wavelength beam combining along a stacking dimension of a laser stack formed of a plurality of laser arrays, each laser array configured to generate optical radiation having a unique wavelength, and each of the plurality of laser arrays including a plurality of laser emitters arranged along an array dimension of the laser stack. The multi-wavelength beam combiner includes a cylindrical telescope configured to image each of the laser emitters along a slow axis of the laser emitters, a transform lens arranged to intercept the optical radiation from each of the plurality of laser arrays and combine the optical radiation along a stacking dimension of the laser stack to form a multi-wavelength optical beam, and a diffraction element positioned at a region of overlap of the optical radiation to receive and transmit the multi-wavelength optical beam.
摘要:
An external-cavity one-dimensional multi-wavelength beam combiner that performs wavelength beam combining along a stacking dimension of a laser stack formed of a plurality of laser arrays, each laser array configured to generate optical radiation having a unique wavelength, and each of the plurality of laser arrays including one or more laser emitters arranged along an array dimension of the laser stack. The multi-wavelength beam combiner includes an optical imaging element configured to image each of the laser emitters along a slow axis of the laser emitters, an optical focusing element arranged to intercept the optical radiation from each of the plurality of laser arrays and combine the optical radiation along a stacking dimension of the laser stack to form a multi-wavelength optical beam, and a diffraction element positioned at a region of overlap of the optical radiation to receive and transmit the multi-wavelength optical beam.
摘要:
A free space external cavity multi-wavelength laser that includes a free space external cavity and a two-dimensional laser array is described. The two-dimensional laser array includes a plurality of optical gain elements where each optical gain element generates optical radiation having a unique wavelength and a unique free space optical path. The laser also includes a two-dimensional dispersive optical system that spatially and angularly overlaps each of the free space optical paths in two dimensions. The laser also includes a partially reflecting element that is positioned to intercept each of the free space optical paths. The partially reflecting element, a reflector on each gain element, and the two-dimensional dispersive optical system together form a free space laser cavity that defines the unique wavelengths. The partially reflecting element transmits an overlapping beam comprising radiation having the unique wavelengths.