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Coherent combination of high-power, zigzag slab lasers
G D Goodno1, H Komine, S J McNaught
1Northrop Grumman Space Technology, California 90278, USA. gregory.goodno@ngc.com
Optics Letters
|April 28, 2006
Summary
Researchers developed a scalable architecture for high-power solid-state lasers using coherent beam combining. This novel approach achieves unprecedented brightness for continuous-wave lasers.
Area of Science:
- Laser physics
- Photonics
- Optical engineering
Background:
- High-power solid-state lasers are crucial for various scientific and industrial applications.
- Existing architectures face limitations in scalability and beam quality.
- Master oscillator power amplifier (MOPA) chains offer a potential path to higher power levels.
Purpose of the Study:
- To demonstrate a scalable architecture for a high-power, high-brightness, solid-state laser.
- To achieve a continuous-wave (cw) laser output exceeding previous benchmarks.
- To combine multiple laser beamlets into a single, high-quality output beam.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a coherent combination of master oscillator power amplifier (MOPA) chains.
- Employed a common master oscillator to inject a sequence of multikilowatt Nd:YAG zigzag slab amplifiers.
- Implemented adaptive optics for wavefront correction and active phase locking of individual beamlets.
Main Results:
- Achieved a total output power of 19 kW.
- Maintained excellent beam quality, less than 2x diffraction limited.
- Demonstrated the brightest continuous-wave (cw) solid-state laser to date.
Conclusions:
- The developed scalable architecture enables high-power, high-brightness solid-state laser generation.
- Coherent combination of amplified beamlets is an effective strategy for power scaling.
- This work sets a new standard for cw solid-state laser performance.
