Compact pulsed diode laser driver for triggering photoconductive semiconductor switches

Compact commercial drivers for triggering photoconductive semiconductor switches (PCSSs) are needed for a variety of DOD applications. Switching of PCSSs is commonly achieved using an external q-switched laser, but such sources are not SWaP+C optimized and suffer from poor timing jitter. Recent progress in semiconductor lasers has made it possible to directly drive arrays of PCSSs with the output from a single diode laser array. However, because of the fast pulse rise time requirements, the diode laser source must be fully-integrated with the driver electronic circuit board and precisely impedance matched to the electronic drive circuitry. Such an integrated module could be made to be very compact and efficient, greatly improving the SWaP+C of the integrated system. Freedom Photonics proposes the development of a pulsed diode laser module for triggering photoconductive switches. This module will be useful for driving arrays of high-gain GaAs PCSSs and linear-mode wide bandgap PCSSs.