Patent · US Expired

Electromagnetic wave ring resonator

US4229106A · kind A · utility

30Cited by
5References
28Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateMay 18, 1978
Grant dateOct 21, 1980
Priority date
Expiry dateMay 18, 1998

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG02B26/06
  • WIPO fieldOptics
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

An electromagnetic wave ring resonator is disclosed including means to spatially rotate the electromagnetic field distribution of waves resonant therein about the direction of propagation of such waves to enable such waves to resonate with opposite senses of circular polarization, and means, including a laser amplifier medium, to provide different indices of refraction to resonant waves of the same sense of circular polarization as they pass through such laser amplifier medium in different directions. With such arrangement the two mentioned means enable the waves to resonate with four different frequencies. In a laser gyroscope using such ring resonator the electromagnetic field distribution rotating means includes a catoptric arrangement which, together with the last-mentioned means, reduces the loss, scatter and linear birefringence associated with the ring resonator included in such gyroscope. The last-mentioned means produces the Zeeman effect in the laser medium and efficiently provides different optical pathlengths for waves passing through such medium because the magnetic field vector of such waves interacts with the processing atomic magnetic dipoles of the amplifier medium…

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.