Multiple wavelength laser system

• US 8,724,671 B2
• Filed: 01/24/2013
• Issued: 05/13/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/24/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Southwest Research Institute
• Original Assignee: Southwest Research Institute
• Inventors: Moore, Thomas Z.
• Primary Examiner(s): Niu, Xinning
• Application Number:
  US13/749,286
• Publication Number:
  US 20130195128A1
• Time in Patent Office: 474 Days
• Field of Search: 372/94
• US Class Current: 372/94
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/08086 Multiple-wavelength emission
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/0809 Two-wavelenghth emission
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/083 Ring lasers fibre ring lasers H01S3/06791
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/094038 End pumping
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/094076 Pulsed or modulated pumping H01S3/1024 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/10092 Coherent seed, e.g. injection locking
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/107 using electro-optic devices, e.g. exhibiting Pockels or Kerr effect H01S3/1061, H01S3/1063, H01S3/1065 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/1312 by controlling the optical pumping
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/137 for stabilising of frequency
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/1625 titanium
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/1636 Al2O3 (Sapphire)
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/2375 Hybrid lasers H01S3/07 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/0064 Anti-reflection components, e.g. optical isolators
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/0604 comprising a non-linear region, e.g. generating harmonics of the laser frequency
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/0615 Q-switching, i.e. in which the quality factor of the optical resonator is rapidly changed
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/4025 Array arrangements, e.g. constituted by discrete laser diodes or laser bar H01S5/42 takes precedence

Abstract

A system for generating multiple simultaneous laser wavelengths, said system comprising: a pulsed slave laser comprising a non-linear electro-optic crystal optically coupled to a lasing crystal in a ring cavity configuration, said non-linear electro-optic crystal configured to adjust an optical path length of said ring cavity in response to an applied voltage potential; an energy pump configured to initiate a pulse cycle in said pulsed slave laser in response to a trigger; a cavity control circuit configured to apply said voltage potential to said non-linear electro-optic crystal to generate a cavity resonance condition associated with said adjusted optical path length, said cavity control circuit further configured to provide said trigger to said energy pump in response to a detection of said cavity resonance condition; and one or more seed lasers configured to inject a single frequency laser beam into said pulsed slave laser.

Claims

1. A system for generating multiple simultaneous laser wavelengths, said system comprising:

a pulsed slave laser comprising a non-linear electro-optic crystal optically coupled to a lasing crystal in a ring cavity configuration, said non-linear electro-optic crystal configured to adjust an optical path length of said ring cavity in response to an applied voltage potential;

an energy pump configured to initiate a pulse cycle in said pulsed slave laser in response to a flash trigger;

a master seed laser configured to inject a first single frequency laser beam into said pulsed slave laser;

a slave seed laser configured to inject a second single frequency laser beam into said pulsed slave laser; and

a cavity control circuit configured to;

apply said voltage potential to said non-linear electro-optic crystal;

ramp said voltage potential from an initial voltage to a final voltage, said final voltage associated with detection of a cavity resonance condition associated with said adjusted optical path length, said cavity resonance condition matching a resonance condition of said master seed laser;

maintain said voltage potential at said final voltage for a pre-determined hold-time period;

de-tune said slave seed laser, during said hold-time period, such that said slave seed laser matches said cavity resonance condition; and

provide a Q-switch trigger to said energy pump within 30 microseconds of the start of said hold-time period.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein said master seed laser and one or more of said slave seed lasers are associated with one of said multiple simultaneous laser wavelengths.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein said master seed laser beam is injected into said pulsed slave laser in a co-propagating direction relative to said slave seed laser beam.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein said master seed laser beam is injected into said pulsed slave laser in a counter-propagating direction relative to said slave seed laser beam.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein said non-linear electro-optic crystal is a potassium dihydrogen phosphate (KD*P) crystal and said lasing crystal is a titanium sapphire (TiS) crystal.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein said lasing crystal is selected from the group consisting of a neodymium doped yttrium aluminum garnet (Nd:

YAG) crystal, an alexandrite crystal, an erbium doped yttrium aluminum garnet (Er;

YAG) crystal and a ytterbium doped yttrium aluminum garnet (Yb;

YAG) crystal.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein said energy pump is selected from the group consisting of an ND:

YAG laser and a flash lamp.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein said seed laser is an external cavity diode laser.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the fundamental frequency of said multiple simultaneous laser wavelengths is within the near infrared wavelength range of the spectrum.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein said hold-time period is in the range of 30 microseconds to 250 microseconds.

11. A method for generating multiple simultaneous laser wavelengths, said method comprising:

configuring a non-linear electro-optic crystal to adjust an optical path length of a pulsed slave laser in response to an applied voltage potential, said pulsed slave laser comprising a lasing crystal coupled to said non-linear electro-optic crystal in a ring cavity configuration;

providing a flash trigger to an energy pump to initiate a pulse cycle in said pulsed slave laser;

injecting a first single frequency laser beam from a master seed laser into said pulsed slave laser;

injecting a second single frequency laser beam from a slave seed laser into said pulsed slave laser;

ramping said voltage potential from an initial voltage to a final voltage, said final voltage associated with detection of a cavity resonance condition associated with said adjusted optical path length, said cavity resonance condition matching a resonance condition of said master seed laser;

maintaining said voltage potential at said final voltage for a pre-determined hold-time period;

de-tuning said slave seed laser, during said hold-time period, such that said slave seed laser matches said cavity resonance condition; and

providing a Q-switch trigger to said energy pump within 30 microseconds of the start of said hold-time period.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein said master seed laser and one or more of said slave seed lasers are associated with one of said multiple simultaneous laser wavelengths.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising injecting said master seed laser beam into said pulsed slave laser in a co-propagating direction relative to said slave seed laser beam.

14. The method of claim 11, further comprising injecting said master seed laser beam into said pulsed slave laser in a counter-propagating direction relative to said slave seed laser beam.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein said non-linear electro-optic crystal is a potassium dihydrogen phosphate (KD*P) crystal.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the fundamental frequency of said multiple simultaneous laser wavelengths is within the near infrared wavelength range of the spectrum.

17. The method of claim 11, wherein said hold-time period is in the range of 30 microseconds to 250 microseconds.