Solid State Dye Laser

Solid state dye lasers are of considerable importance for the laser industry in general. Currently, host materials present several problems, like low stability, low damage threshold and dye degradation, which lead to a short operating life for these materials. Therefore, research with the purpose of identifying stable solid host materials that can be impregnated with laser dyes will be carried out. MTI is proposing to develop a class of guest-host materials with superior optical quality and high damage threshold to be used as solid state dye lasers. The proposed materials are based on solgel technology. The guest-host samples prepared by this process will be cured at high temperature, which will ensure that the selected dye will be locked in the three-dimensional network of the glass matrix. The developed materials will be characterized for their optical properties and damage threshold. ANTICIPATED BENEFITS: The results of this research will be new materials for solid state dye lasers. Consequently, small portable dye lasers will become possible. These lasers are of considerable importance for commercial applications in the field of optical data processing and communications.