High-power, compact, and reliable ultraviolet lasers operating in the 320-350nm spectral band are critical for various naval applications including: countermeasure for aircraft protection, advanced chemicals sensors based on Raman spectroscopy and laser identification detection and ranging (LIDAR). As is the case for most military laser applications, the size weight and power of the device is critical for widespread adoption of the technology. In addition to the defense and military applications, there are also significant opportunities for medical and chemical sensing applications. Unfortunately, compact, high-power, UV laser sources are difficult to realize using traditional sources. There are many types of UV laser systems currently available, but limitations on output power, tunability, large size, or expense limit their widespread use. TPhotonics Inc. proposes to use a patented novel modified t-cavity design, which incorporates vertical external cavity surface emitting laser (VECSEL) technology, to realize high-power UV outputs in a reliable and compact package. Using a high a power multi-chip VECSEL design efficient intracavity sum frequency conversion will be achieved to generate the desired UV outputs using no active cavity stabilization.
Benefit: TPhotonics Inc. lasers are built around a flexible platform featuring our proprietary T-cavity designs. This design allows us to easily design products given a customers specific need. It is our philosophy to target multiple uses based on this design. A simple modification to the laser of this proposal could lead to an efficient and high power ultraviolet (UV) laser source at other wavelengths which would have numerous applications in lidar, chemical detection, and atmospheric monitoring. Due to the customizable design of our laser system, the proposed high power, high brightness red and green laser would have the potential to replace existing sources and have a variety of medical applications as well as for material processing and semiconductor processing. High power lasers have many potential applications in DOD and commercial laser systems. The proposed UV laser represents a significant opportunity for TPhotonics Inc. Through our many discussions with various industry professionals we understand there is a strong desire for compact, low cost, efficient and lightweight pulsed laser sources. In addition to the proposed effort, TPhotonics sees the potential for an important and sizeable market in communications, mine detection and other optical technologies that utilize blue-green lasers. In addition, as our base technology expands through further research and development, it will be possible to cover the spectrum from the UV, to the visible, near and mid-IR, and even the THz regimes to exploit significant commercial applications.
Keywords: Nonlinear frequency conversion, Nonlinear frequency conversion, High efficiency, UV Laser
