SBIR Phase II: Q-Switched Operation of Microchip Laser Composite Cavities

小行星9300486 调Q激光器是产生短、高强度光脉冲的实用手段。 对于某些应用，激光器的物理尺寸和鲁棒性是一个重要的考虑因素，在这些情况下，Q开关，复合腔，微芯片激光器是非常可取的。 传统的激光技术使用分立的光学部件，这些光学部件由于热循环或振动而受到未对准的影响。 复合腔微芯片激光器技术消除了传统激光器中存在的多余空间，从而使激光器的封装尺寸尽可能小。 Q开关激光器可以独立设计，以优化峰值功率、脉冲能量、功率效率或脉冲宽度。 本研究的主要目标是开发复合腔微芯片激光器从各种激光材料，优化这些参数。 这是SBIR第二阶段项目，提供性能权衡数据，使Q开关微芯片激光器能够设计用于许多应用。 Q开关复合腔微片激光器的应用包括：材料加工（焊接、钎焊、烧蚀等），激光测距（地形测绘、防撞、光时域反射率、激光雷达），以及通过频率转换产生可见辐射，例如，用于光学记录。 ***

9300486 Keszenheimer Q-switching a laser is a practical means of producing short, high intensity optical pulses. For some applications the physical size and robustness of the laser is an important consideration, and in these cases Q-switched, composite-cavity, microchip lasers are highly desirable. Conventional laser technology uses discrete optical components which are subject to misalignment due to thermal cycling or vibration. Composite-cavity microchip laser technology eliminates the superfluous space present in conventional lasers allowing the smallest possible package size for the laser. Q-switched lasers can be designed independently to optimize peak power, pulse energy, power efficiency, or pulse width. The primary goal of this research is to develop composite-cavity microchip lasers from a variety of laser materials which optimize these parameters. This is a SBIR Phase II project that provides data on performance tradeoffs that will enable Q-switched microchip lasers to be designed for many applications. Such applications of Q-switched composite-cavity microchip lasers include: materials processing (welding, soldering, ablation, etc.), laser range finding (topographic mapping, collision avoidance, optical time domain reflectivity, laser radar), and generation of visible radiation via frequency conversion ,e.g., for optical recording. ***