COMPREHENSIVE STUDY OF DIODE-PUMPED DYE LASERS

DYE LASERS ARE UTILIZED IN A VARIETY OF SCIENTIFIC, COMMERCIAL, AND MILITARY APPLICATIONS, PRIMARILY DUE TO THEIR ABILITY TO BE TUNED OVER A BROAD SPECTRAL RANGE COVERING THE ULTRAVIOLET, VISIBLE, AND NEAR-INFRARED. THE EFFICIENCY OF DYE LASERS IS LOW, PRIMARILY DUE TO THE LOW EFFICIENCY OF OPTICAL SOURCES USED FOR DYE EXCITATION. IN RECENT YEARS, SEMICONDUCTOR DIODE LASERS HAVE BEEN WIDELY DEVELOPED AS SINGLE ELEMENTS, LINEAR ARRAYS, AND 2-DIMENSIONAL ARRAYS. FURTHERMORE, SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS HAS BEEN MADE IN THE POWER LEVELS AVAILABLE FROM SINGLE DIODES AND DIODE ARRAYS, AND SHORTER AND SHORTER WAVELENGTHS ARE BECOMING AVAILABLE. SINGLE DIODES CAN HAVE WALL PLUG EFFICIENCIES IN EXCESS OF 45% WHEREAS DIODE ARRAYS HAVE REPORTED EFFICIENCIES IN THE RANGE OF 30-40%. WE PROPOSE, DURING A PHASE I PROGRAM, TO COMPREHENSIVELY STUDY THE USE OF DIODE LASERS AND ARRAYS IN PUMPING DYE LASERS. ANALYSIS HAS SHOWN THAT A DRAMATIC INCREASE IN DYE LASER EFFICIENCY CAN BE REALIZED BY USING DIODES AS PUMP SOURCES. IN ADDITION, CONSIDERABLE FLEXIBILITY IN DYE LASER DESIGN AND WAVELENGTH AGILITY MAY BE ACHIEVED. DURING A PHASE II FOLLOW-ON PROGRAM, WE PROPOSE TO DEMONSTRATE AN OPTIMIZED DIODE-PUMP DYE LASER SYSTEM.