Ultrashort optical pulse amplifiers incorporating a gain medium preferentially cooled along a crystalline axis
US5818628A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Dec 20, 1996 |
| Grant date | Oct 6, 1998 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Dec 20, 2016 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH01S3/2308
- WIPO fieldOptics
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
An ultrashort optical pulse amplifier that incorporates a gain medium preferentially cooled along a crystalline axis for partially ameliorating the thermally induced distortions and losses created by cylindrically symmetric cooled designs. The ultrashort pulse amplifier can be pumped with higher pump powers without degradation of the output spatial mode structure and the overall efficiency of extraction of energy from the gain medium is improved. The gain medium preferably has a rectangular cross section and cooling means are provided in thermal contact with only selected opposing surfaces of the gain medium so that thermal gradients lie approximately along a crystalline axis to reduce thermally-induced birefringence.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.