Increased Performance of GCSEL Arrays by Improved Thermal Management

This Phase I SBIR effort will demonstrate the feasibility of using RTI's patent pending cooling technology, Evaporative Spray Cooling (ESC), to enable a revolutionary GCSEL diode laser technology to be scaled to high power. The GCSEL array has the abilityto cut any material in a rapid and precise fashion with low beam divergence diodes; and by adding the advanced heat removal capacity of ESC the GCSEL array can be scaled to higher average powers. RTI is working closely with this GCSEL laser company; theyare supplying matching funds on this SBIR effort.The ESC technique offers high-heat-flux heat removal from the GCSEL array, as well as reduced overall size and mass of the thermal management system. This combination enables an increase in laser power and a reduction in subsystem support. Both are vitalfor HEL applications on tactical platforms. The proposed technology combination will result in a revolutionary laser cutting abilities, with increased power density and reduced system size.