Continuously-tunable external cavity laser
US6282215A · kind A · utility
84Cited by
2References
35Claims
0Family size
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Oct 15, 1999 |
| Grant date | Aug 28, 2001 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Oct 15, 2019 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH01S5/4087
- WIPO fieldOptics
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
The present invention provides a continuously-tunable external cavity laser (ECL) with a compact form factor and precise tuning. A novel interference filter which may be used to tune the ECL provides an absence of mode-hopping and reduced feedback from both spurious interference and reflections in the external cavity. A novel tuning mechanism is disclosed which provides for mechanical FM tuning of a wide range ECL tuning elements such as: an interference filter, a diffraction element, and a retroreflector. A novel feedback circuit is disclosed which provides closed loop feedback for selecting output wavelength in a laser.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.