×

System and method for high-power, pulsed ring fiber oscillator

  • US 9,653,872 B2
  • Filed: 06/04/2014
  • Issued: 05/16/2017
  • Est. Priority Date: 10/24/2005
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
Patent Images

1. A method comprising:

  • providing a rare-earth doped first fiber gain medium;

    configuring a ring optical signal path that extends through the first fiber gain medium;

    Q-switching a ring signal laser beam in the ring optical signal path, wherein the Q-switched ring signal laser beam has a pulse repetition rate that is independent of the ring optical signal path'"'"'s length during normal operation of the Q-switching, and wherein the Q-switched ring signal laser beam has a first wavelength and propagates in the ring optical signal path in a first direction, wherein the Q-switching is one of a plurality of operational modes that are electrically switchable from one to another, and wherein the plurality of operational modes includes both a continuous-wave mode and a Q-switched mode;

    extracting a first optical signal beam from the Q-switched ring signal laser beam in a free-space portion of the ring optical signal path;

    separating from the free-space portion of the ring optical signal path at least a portion of any light counter-propagating in the ring optical signal path in a second direction other than the first direction, wherein the separating from the ring optical signal path is spatially separate from the extracting of the first optical signal beam; and

    forcing a majority of the Q-switched ring signal laser beam to lase in the first direction around the ring optical signal path by reflecting at least a portion of any light separated from the ring optical signal path by the separating to propagate in the ring optical signal path in the first direction.

View all claims
  • 4 Assignments
Timeline View
Assignment View
    ×
    ×