Abstract
Our approach uses the Textron ThinZag™ configuration shown in Figure 1. The laser cell is made of fused silica with a flow channel that is 4 mm wide, 15 mm high, and 220 mm long. Two plastic dye slabs, 1.5 mm thick by 10 mm high by 110 mm long, are positioned in the flow channel. Water was used as the cooling fluid flowing through the channel. Laser flux is coupled into and out of the cell through quartz prisms. Laser flux inside the ThinZag™ device undergoes 5 bounces (six passes through the plastic slabs) at an angle of ~45°. The inexpensive, commercially produced, dye impregnated plastic sheets were made using PM-567 dye @ 5 × 10−4 Molar concentration in 15 percent laurel methacrylate modified PMMA. An all solid-state approach was implemented by using a frequency doubled Nd:YAG laser operating between 2 Hz and 10 Hz with ~10 ns pulses to optically pump the device. About 150 m) of 532 nm-pump energy was coupled into the zig-zag cell. Efficient (30%) lasing was demonstrated with very little ASE degradation of performance.
© 2002 Optical Society of America
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