Itt Manufacturing Enterprises, Inc.

Exelis Inc.

Dale Allen Richter

Thomas Herman Chyba

Wayne Armstrong

Brian D Kelly

Patrick Louis Ponsardin

Clarence Theodore Lobb, Iii

Robert D Babnick

David Michael Sanchez

Noah Scott Higdon

Waverly Dickson Marsh

Quang Duy Bui

A dual-cavity single longitudinal mode (SLM) laser oscillator generates a pulsed laser signal having a long pulsewidth, long coherence length, and good shot-to-shot energy stability. The laser oscillator has a first cavity between an output coupler and a rear mirror and a second cavity between the output coupler and an intra-cavity mirror disposed between the output coupler and rear mirror. High-loss cavity optics and a passive Q-switch achieve a very high number of round trips that reduce the number of cavity modes down to two or three. The dual cavity design further discriminates between the remaining modes and allows SLM operation. The laser oscillator and an amplifier can be used as a pump laser for a laser system that generates red, green, and blue pulses for holographic recording. A wavelength conversion stage uses optical parametric amplifier(s), doubling crystals, and sum-frequency mixers to produce RGB light from the pump pulses.

Methods and apparatus for generating RGB laser light

A wavelength-agile laser transmitter apparatus and method are provided. The apparatus comprises a pump laser that is configured to output a pump beam at a first (pump) wavelength and an optical parametric oscillator. The optical parametric oscillator comprises a cavity that contains several optical components including a non-linear optical medium, a first, second and third optical elements, and a narrow linewidth filter. The non-linear optical medium is configured to convert light at the first wavelength to light at a second (signal) wavelength and a third (idler) wavelength that are each longer than the first wavelength. Light at the second and third wavelengths is allowed to partially resonate in the optical parametric oscillator, and the output beam of the apparatus corresponds to light at the third wavelength.

Wavelength-agile laser transmitter using optical parametric oscillator

An apparatus for laser interrogation of surface agents moving relative to the apparatus. A receiver telescope includes a secondary reflector that may compensate for variations in distance from a target to the laser. The secondary reflector relies on a distance to target signal that may be collected at a point substantially away from the target, in the direction of relative motion, to allow a focusing mechanism time to react.

Laser interrogation of surface agents

A low-finesse, tri-etalon optical parametric oscillator includes an optical cavity bounded by two coupling mirrors, and a narrow-linewidth pump laser which supplies pump energy to the optical cavity at a pump wavelength. A pair of walk-off compensated, non-linear optical crystals (but not limited to walk-off compensated) is disposed with the cavity and converts energy at the pump wavelength to energy at longer signal and idler wavelengths. The mirrors are configured such that each of the three beams (pump, signal and idler) is approximately 70% to 100% reflected at one end of the cavity and approximately 10% to 30% reflected at the other end of the cavity. This configuration causes partial resonance of each of the beams and generates an etalon effect which enhances the fluence in the leading and trailing edges of pulses in the cavity, thereby enhancing the energy conversion efficiency from the pump wavelength to the signal and idler wavelengths.

Low finesse, tri-etalon, optical parametric oscillator

Growing community of inventors

Sandia Park, NM, United States of America

Dale Allen Richter