Passive phasing of fiber amplifiers

• US 7,130,113 B2
• Filed: 12/20/2004
• Issued: 10/31/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 12/20/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation (Northrop Grumman Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Northrop Grumman Corporation
• Inventors: Nelson, Burke E., Shakir, Sami A., Hendow, Sami T., Culver, William Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): Keith, Jack
• Application Number:
  US11/015,671
• Publication Number:
  US 20060132903A1
• Time in Patent Office: 680 Days
• Field of Search: 359/333, 359/298, 359/337, 359/349, 372/6
• US Class Current: 359/349
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/108 for sampling a portion of a beam or combining a small beam in a larger one, e.g. wherein the area ratio or power ratio of the divided beams significantly differs from unity, without spectral selectivity
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/144 using partially transparent surfaces without spectral selectivity G02B27/147 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/2817 using reflective elements to split or combine optical signals
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/005 Optical devices external to the laser cavity, specially adapted for lasers, e.g. for homogenisation of the beam or for manipulating laser pulses, e.g. pulse shaping shaping laser beam for working metal or other materials B23K26/06; optical elements, systems or apparatus in general G02B
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/0064 Anti-reflection devices, e.g. optical isolaters absorbing layers for marking or protecting purposes in laser working B23K26/50; magneto-optical non-reciprocal devices G02F1/093, G02F1/0955
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/06754 Fibre amplifiers H01S3/06708 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/06758 Tandem amplifiers
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/10092 Coherent seed, e.g. injection locking
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/1302 by all-optical means, e.g. gain-clamping
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/1307 Stabilisation of the phase
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/2383 Parallel arrangements

Abstract

A method passively locks and phases an array of fiber amplifiers in a fiber amplifier system that emits a beam, such as a laser beam. The method locks the fiber amplifiers so that the fiber amplifiers operate at same or similar frequencies. The method samples a small portion of the emitted beam in a far-field around a central lobe on an optical axis and then couples this portion of emitted beam back into the array of fiber amplifiers. The fiber amplifiers may be phased so that the emitted beam concentrates its energy around the central lobe in the far-field. Phasing may be achieved by using an aperture, for example, to restrict the portion of the emitted beam to be coupled back to a restricted region around the optical axis.

Claims

1. A system for passive phasing of fiber amplifiers, comprising:

an array of fiber amplifiers including a plurality of fiber amplifiers, the array of fiber amplifiers emitting a beam; and

an optical device placed at a far-field of the array of fiber amplifiers, wherein the optical device couples a first portion of the emitted beam back into the array of fiber amplifiers through a coupling hole, and wherein only the first portion of the emitted beam propagates through the coupling hole, wherein the optical device is placed around a central lobe on an optical axis of the array of fiber amplifiers, wherein the optical device is a collimating mirror, and wherein the array of fiber amplifiers are configured as a ring with a transmitting end and a receiving end of the array of fiber amplifiers being positioned toward each other to form the ring.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the optical device placed around a central lobe on an optical axis of the array of fiber amplifiers, wherein only the first portion of the emitted beam that is in-phase propagates through the coupling hole, and wherein the optical device couples two to three percent of the emitted beam back into the array of fiber amplifiers.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the optical device placed around a central lobe on an optical axis of the array of fiber amplifiers, wherein only the first portion of the emitted beam that is in-phase propagates through the coupling hole, and wherein the optical device couples four percent of the emitted beam back into the array of fiber amplifiers.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the optical device is placed around a central lobe on an optical axis of the array of fiber amplifiers, the system further comprising an isolator that transmits the first portion of the emitted beam in one direction, wherein the isolator blocks amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) and stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS).

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the optical device is placed around a central lobe on an optical axis of the array of fiber amplifiers, the system further comprising an array of microlenses connected to the array of fiber amplifiers, wherein the array of microlenses includes a plurality of microlenses, each microlens corresponding to a single fiber amplifier.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the optical device is placed around a central lobe on an optical axis of the array of fiber amplifiers, the system further comprising an array of microlenses that is connected to the array of fiber amplifiers and receives the first portion of the emitted beam.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the optical device is placed around a central lobe on an optical axis of the array of fiber amplifiers, the system further comprising fiber Bragg grating (FBG) reflectors connected to the array of fiber amplifiers to form double-pass amplifiers.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the optical device is placed around a central lobe on an optical axis of the array of fiber amplifiers, the system further comprising an array of pre-amplifiers that amplifies the first portion of the emitted beam before coupling the first portion of the emitted beam to the array of fiber amplifiers.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the optical device is placed around a central lobe on an optical axis of the array of fiber amplifiers, wherein the collimating mirror outputs a second portion of the emitted beam as a collimated output beam, wherein the second portion of the emitted beam is not coupled back into the array of fiber amplifiers.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the optical device is placed around a central lobe on an optical axis of the array of fiber amplifiers, wherein the optical device is a beamsplitter, wherein the array of fiber amplifiers are configured as a ring with a transmitting end and a receiving end of the array of fiber amplifiers being separated from each other to form the ring, and wherein the system further comprises:

a tuning grating that redirects the first portion of the emitted beam, wherein the tuning grating is capable of tuning frequencies.

11. A system for passive phasing of fiber amplifiers, comprising:

an array of fiber amplifiers including a plurality of fiber amplifiers, the array of fiber amplifiers emitting a beam and configured as a ring with a transmitting end and a receiving end of the array of fiber amplifiers being positioned toward each other to form the ring;

a collimating mirror placed at a far-field of the array of fiber amplifiers, wherein the collimating mirror couples a first portion of the emitted beam back into the array of fiber amplifiers through a coupling hole, and wherein only the first portion of the emitted beam propagates through the coupling hole; and

an array of pre-amplifiers that amplifies the first portion of the emitted beam before coupling the first portion of the emitted beam to the array of fiber amplifiers.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the collimating mirror is placed around a central lobe on an optical axis of the array of fiber amplifiers, wherein the collimating mirror outputs a second portion of the emitted beam as a collimated output beam, wherein the second portion of the emitted beam is not coupled back into the array of fiber amplifiers.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the collimating mirror is placed around a central lobe on an optical axis of the array of fiber amplifiers, wherein only the first portion of the emitted beam that is in-phase propagates through the coupling hole, and wherein the collimating mirror couples two to three percent of the emitted beam back into the array of fiber amplifiers.

14. The system of claim 11, wherein the collimating mirror is placed around a central lobe on an optical axis of the array of fiber amplifiers, wherein only the first portion of the emitted beam that is in-phase propagates through the coupling hole, and wherein the collimating mirror couples four percent of the emitted beam back into the array of fiber amplifiers.

15. The system of claim 11, wherein the collimating mirror is placed around a central lobe on an optical axis of the array of fiber amplifiers, the system further comprising an isolator that transmits the first portion of the emitted beam in one direction, wherein the isolator blocks amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) and stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS).

16. The system of claim 11, wherein the collimating mirror is placed around a central lobe on an optical axis of the array of fiber amplifiers, the system further comprising an array of microlenses connected to the array of fiber amplifiers, wherein the array of microlenses includes a plurality of microlenses, each microlens corresponding to a single fiber amplifier.

17. The system of claim 11, wherein the collimating mirror is placed around a central lobe on an optical axis of the array of fiber amplifiers, the system further comprising fiber Bragg grating (FBG) reflectors connected to the array of fiber amplifiers to form double-pass amplifiers.