SBIR Phase II: Diode-Pumped, High-Power, Cr:LiSAF-Based Ultrafast Laser and THz Source

小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第二阶段将开发超快激光系统，这可能代表着直接二极管泵浦、固态、超快光源技术的重大进步。在最初的第一阶段工作中，通过使用创新的侧面泵浦设计，展示了来自二极管泵浦激光器的创纪录的连续功率水平(2W)。在第二阶段，这一设计将得到进一步改进，并作为再生放大器产生高峰值功率的基础。被动锁模、二极管泵浦激光器的输出应该为再生放大器提供种子脉冲。整个超快光源应该比目前的、功率相当的、基于蓝宝石的超快激光系统更简单、更小，最终也更便宜。作为对所提出技术的实用性的演示，将基于由激光系统驱动的光学整流太赫兹源和电光探测器来构建一台时域太赫兹(THz)光谱仪。直接二极管泵浦的超快激光是一种使能技术，允许超快和太赫兹系统从实验室涌现出来，进入广泛的科学和工业应用。拟议的超快激光和太赫兹光谱仪都可能产生重大的科学和商业影响。由于设计简单，成本更低(约为50%)，学术界和工业界更广泛的研究小组将能够获得超快光源和太赫兹仪器。该系统的低成本、简单性、高可靠性和更小的尺寸还将极大地扩大和加速超快激光和THz辐射在生物技术、医学成像、精密微加工、工业过程控制和安全系统中的使用。

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II will develop the ultrafast laser system that could represent a significant advance in the technology of directly diode-pumped, solid state, ultrafast sources. In the initial Phase I effort, a record cw power level ( 2W) from diode-pumped Lasers were demonstrated through the use of an innovative, side-pumped design. In Phase II, this design will be further improved and utilized as the basis for a regenerative amplifier to generate high peak powers. The output of a passively mode-locked, diode-pumped laser should provide the seed pulses for the regenerative amplifier. The overall ultrafast source should be simpler, smaller and ultimately less expensive than present, power-equivalent, sapphire-based ultrafast laser systems. As a demonstration of the utility of the proposed technology, a time-domain terahertz (THz) spectrometer will be constructed, based on an optical-rectification THz source and an electro-optical detector, both driven by the laser system. The directly diode-pumped ultrafast laser represents an enabling technology, allowing ultrafast and THz systems to emerge from the laboratory and into the widespread scientific and industrial applications The proposed ultrafast laser and THz spectrometer both could have the potential for significant scientific and commercial impact. With the lower cost (on the order of 50%) made possible by the simplicity of design, a wider range of research groups in academia and industry will be able to obtain ultrafast sources and THz instrumentation. The lower cost, simplicity, higher reliability and smaller size of the systems will also greatly expand and accelerate the use of ultrafast lasers and THz radiation in biotechnology, medical imaging, precision micro-machining, industrial process control and security systems.