Dual-grating spectral beam combiner

Abstract

A dual-grating spectral beam combiner includes a series of sources emitting a respective series of diverging laser beams with mutually parallel center rays offset from each other in a one-dimensional array. The laser beam wavelengths are incremented monotonically across the array. A first diffraction grating receives the diverging laser beams from the sources and diffracts the diverging laser beams to form respective once-diffracted diverging beams with mutually converging center rays. A second diffraction grating is positioned where the center rays of the once-diffracted diverging beams coincide, and diffracts the once-diffracted diverging beams to form a single combined diverging laser beam consisting of twice-diffracted diverging beams. The combined diverging laser beam may be subsequently collimated. By operating the dual-grating spectral beam combiner with diverging beams, it is possible to combine a high number of laser beams while keeping the propagation path between the two gratings short without requiring narrow linewidths.