Kilowatt-class diode laser system

• US 8,488,245 B1
• Filed: 08/25/2011
• Issued: 07/16/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/07/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Corporation Of North America (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: TeraDiode, Inc. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Chann, Bien, Huang, Robin
• Primary Examiner(s): PINKNEY, DAWAYNE
• Application Number:
  US13/218,251
• Time in Patent Office: 691 Days
• Field of Search: 353/31, 353/34, 353/81, 451/28, 451/41, 372/25, 372/92, 372/98, 372/102, 359/618, 359/299, 359/624, 359/245, 359/241, 359/244, 359/288, 359/305, 359/285, 359/308, 359311-312, 359290-292, 359/872, 359/263, 359223-224, 359/318, 359/649, 359/846, 359/129, 359/496, 359/631, 359/629, 359/634, 359/636, 359638-640, 359/831, 359833-834, 359/630, 359/341.3, 359/341.33, 359/337.21
• US Class Current: 359/618
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 19/0014 at least one surface having optical power
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 19/0028 refractive and reflective surfaces, e.g. non-imaging catadioptric systems
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 19/0057 in the form of a laser diode array, e.g. laser diode bar semiconductor laser arrays with beam combining arrangement H01S5/4012
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0905 Dividing and/or superposing multiple light beams
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/094053 Fibre coupled pump, e.g. delivering pump light using a fibre or a fibre bundle
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/094057 by tapered duct or homogenized light pipe, e.g. for concentrating pump light
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/09408 Pump redundancy
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/09415 the pumping beam being parallel to the lasing mode of the pumped medium, e.g. end-pumping
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/005 Optical components external to the laser cavity, specially adapted therefor, e.g. for homogenisation or merging of the beams or for manipulating laser pulses, e.g. pulse shaping H01S5/026, H01S5/18388 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/02 Structural details or components not essential to laser action
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/02423 Liquid cooling, e.g. a liquid cools a mount of the laser
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/22 having a ridge or stripe structure
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/4012 Beam combining, e.g. by the use of fibres, gratings, polarisers, prisms
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/4031 Edge-emitting structures
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/405 Two-dimensional arrays
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/4062 with an external cavity or using internal filters, e.g. Talbot filters
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/4087 emitting more than one wavelength

Abstract

A system and method for producing a kilowatt laser system having a post resonator including a polarization multi-plexer, optical reconfiguration element, anamorphic element and fiber-optic module configured to arrange a multi-wavelength profile for coupling into an optical fiber.

Claims

1. A multi-wavelength laser system comprising:

a wavelength beam combining resonator comprising;

a first and second stack of laser emitters,

a spatial interleaver configured to interleave the emitted beams from the first and second stack of laser emitters,

a cylindrical transform optic positioned to receive the beams and overlap the beams along one dimension onto a dispersive element,

a waveplate positioned between the transform optic and dispersive element,

a second optical system positioned between the dispersive element and a partially-reflective output coupler, wherein feedback from the output coupler forms a resonator with the back facets of each of the emitters, and wherein the output coupler transmits a multi-wavelength beam; and

a post resonator including;

a polarization multiplexer,

optical reconfiguration element,

anamorphic element, and

fiber-optic module.

2. The laser system of claim 1, wherein the first optical system includes at least three optical elements L1, L2, and L3, and wherein the ratio of the focal lengths of L1:

L3 are in range of 0.5 to 2.0.

3. The laser system of claim 2, wherein the ratio of the focal lengths of L1:

L2 are in range of 5 to 100.

4. The laser system of claim 1, wherein the second optical system includes at least three optical elements L4, L5_y, and L5_x, and wherein the ratio of the focal lengths of L5_x:

L4 are in the range of 1 to 5.

5. The laser system of claim 4, wherein the ratio of the focal lengths of L4:

L5_y are in range of 2 to 10.

6. The laser system of claim 1, wherein the first and second stacks each include 15 bars having 19 emitters per bar, wherein each emitter produces a unique wavelength.

7. The laser system of claim 1, wherein the first and second stacks each include 15 bars having 49 emitters per bar, wherein each emitter produces a unique wavelength.

8. The laser system of claim 1, wherein at least a kilowatt of power is coupled into an optical fiber.