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Phase-front measurements of an injection-locked AlGaAs laser-diode array
Optics Letters
|September 16, 2009
Summary
High-quality phase fronts were measured in an injection-locked gain-guided aluminum gallium arsenide (AlGaAs) laser diode array. This demonstrates performance comparable to single-stripe lasers, crucial for laser applications.
Area of Science:
- Optics and Photonics
- Semiconductor Lasers
- Laser Diode Arrays
Background:
- Injection-locked laser diode arrays are critical for high-power laser applications.
- Characterizing phase-front quality is essential for understanding laser performance and beam quality.
Purpose of the Study:
- To measure the phase-front quality of the primary spatial lobe from an injection-locked gain-guided AlGaAs laser diode array.
- To compare the performance of gain-guided arrays with index-guided single-stripe lasers.
Main Methods:
- Utilized an equal-path, phase-shifting Mach-Zehnder interferometer for precise phase error measurement.
- Measured root-mean-square (RMS) phase errors and calculated the Strehl ratio.
Main Results:
- Achieved RMS phase errors of 0.037 +/- 0.003 wave (lambda/27) for a single spatial lobe.
- Measured a Strehl ratio of S = 0.947, indicating excellent phase-front quality.
- Observed a minimal power loss of 0.23 dB from the ideal diffraction-limited power.
Conclusions:
- The injection-locked gain-guided AlGaAs laser diode array exhibits high phase-front quality.
- Performance is comparable to that of single-stripe index-guided AlGaAs lasers.
- This demonstrates the potential of gain-guided arrays for high-power, high-quality laser output.
