Er,Yb:YAB laser system

• US 9,368,933 B1
• Filed: 04/06/2015
• Issued: 06/14/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 04/06/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LadarSystems, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Voxtel, Inc. (Allegro MicroSystems, LLC)
• Inventors: LaChapelle, Joe, Nijjar, Anmol, Williams, George
• Primary Examiner(s): Park, Kinam
• Application Number:
  US14/679,358
• Time in Patent Office: 435 Days
• Field of Search: 372/10, 372/11, 372/12, 372/13, 372/14, 372/4, 372/34, 372/41, 372/71
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 1/02 solid
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/025 of solid state lasers, e.g. housings or mountings
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/0401 of optical elements being part of laser resonator, e.g. windows, mirrors, lenses
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/0405 Conductive cooling, e.g. by heat sinks or thermo-electric elements
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/042 for solid state lasers H01S3/0401 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/0604 in the form of a plate or disc
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/0612 Non-homogeneous structure H01S3/07 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/094038 End pumping
• 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 3/094076 Pulsed or modulated pumping H01S3/1024 takes precedence
• 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 3/1061 using a variable absorption device
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/1115 using intracavity saturable absorbers
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/1118 Semiconductor saturable absorbers, e.g. semiconductor saturable absorber mirrors [SESAMs]; Solid-state saturable absorbers, e.g. carbon nanotube [CNT] based
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/1124 using magneto-optical devices
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/113 using intracavity saturable absorbers
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/115 using intracavity electro-optic devices
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/117 using intracavity acousto-optic devices
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/121 using intracavity mechanical devices
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/1312 by controlling the optical pumping
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/1317 : by controlling the temperature
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/1608 : erbium
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/1618 : ytterbium
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/1666 : borate, carbonate, arsenide

Abstract

A laser system, the laser comprising a codoped Er,Yb:YAB gain medium, the gain medium within a resonator cavity. The laser system further comprising a pumping source, the pumping source having optical output directed towards the gain medium. The laser system further comprising a laser controller, the laser controller operating the pumping source.

Claims

1. A laser system comprising:

a codoped Er,Yb;

YAB gain medium, the gain medium within a resonator cavity;

a pumping source, the pumping source having optical output directed towards the gain medium;

a laser controller, the laser controller operating the pumping source; and

a heat spreader, the heat spreader in thermal communication with the gain medium through a surface wherein the pump source has optical output incident.

2. The laser of claim 1, wherein the laser is actively Q-switched, the active q-switch controlled by the laser controller.

3. The laser of claim 1, wherein the laser is passively Q-switched.

4. The laser system of claim 1, wherein the laser produces greater than 1 Watt (W) average power.

5. The laser system of claim 1, wherein the laser produces greater than produces great than 5 kW peak pulse power.

6. The laser system of claim 1, wherein the heat spreader is an optically transparent window about optically index matched to the Er,Yb:

YAB gain medium and having no etalon effect.

7. The laser system of claim 6, wherein the transparent window is sapphire.

8. The laser system of claim 1, wherein the laser controller prepumps the Er,Yb:

YAB gain medium.

9. The laser system of claim 8, wherein the duration of the pulse pumping is shorter than the upper-state lifetime of the gain medium.

10. The laser system of claim 8, wherein the pulse pumping is used to increase laser pulse energy.

11. The laser system of claim 8 wherein the pulse pumping is used to increase average laser pulse power.

12. A laser system comprising:

a codoped Er,Yb;

YAB gain medium, the gain medium within a resonator cavity;

a pumping source, the pumping source having optical output directed towards the gain medium;

a heat spreader in thermal communication with the gain medium;

a laser controller, the laser controller operating the pumping source; and

a photodetector, the photodetector detecting emission of the optical pulse, the photodetector providing temporal feedback of the time of the laser pulse output.

13. The laser system of claim 12, wherein the laser produces greater than 1 Watt (W) average power.

14. The laser system of claim 12, wherein the laser produces great than 5 kW (Q) peak pulse power.

15. The laser system of claim 12, wherein the laser controller adjusts operating conditions of the laser to reduce jitter.

16. The laser system of claim 12, wherein the photodetector is a photodiode.

17. The laser system of claim 16, wherein the photodiode is InGaAs.

18. The laser system of claim 12 wherein the photodetector is an avalanche photodiode (APD).

19. The laser system of claim 12, wherein the heat spreader is an optically transparent window about optically index matched to the Er,Yb:

YAB gain medium and having no etalon effect.

20. The laser system of claim 19, wherein the transparent window is sapphire.

21. The laser system of claim 12, wherein the pumping source emission is about 976 nm.

22. The laser system of claim 12, wherein the pumping source is a fiber coupled laser diode.

23. The laser system of claim 12, wherein the laser controller operates an active thermal cooler, the thermal cooler in thermal communication with the Er,Yb:

YAB gain medium.

24. The laser system of claim 12, wherein the laser controller modifies the pump current based on temporal feedback from the photodiode.