Laser beam attenuator and method of attenuating a laser beam

US6497490B1 · kind B1 · utility

Assignees

• Silicon Light Machines Corporation · US
• Nutech Optical Systems, Inc. · US

Inventors

• Gregory D. Miller · Palo Alto, US
• Ying-Moh Liu · Lo Wu, CN

Key dates

• Filing date: Dec 14, 1999
• Grant date: Dec 24, 2002
• Expiry date: Dec 14, 2019

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G02B27/145
• WIPO field: Optics
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

A laser beam attenuator and a method of attenuating a laser beam are disclosed. The laser beam attenuator includes first and second prisms, a beam dump, and a light absorbing body. An input laser beam partially refracts and partially reflects at a first surface of the first prism to form first refracted and reflected laser beams. The first reflected laser beam partially refracts and partially reflects at a second surface of the second prism to form second refracted and reflected laser beams. The beam dump and the light absorbing body absorb the first and second refracted laser beams. Thus, the second reflected laser beam forms an attenuated laser beam.