Abstract
Nonlinear optical processes such as frequency doubling permit the extension of diode laser wavelengths to the blue spectral region. Such blue sources offer the potential for optical data storage at areal densities of several Gbit / in2. An attractive approach for efficient frequency doubling of GaAlAs diode lasers is the use of a buildup cavity containing a potassium niobate crystal.1–4 Recently, we reported on the first stable operation of such a device with an output power of up to 21 mW using an electronic servo technique to lock the output frequency of the diode laser to the nonlinear KNbO3 cavity.4 We have now used this locking technique to generate 38 mW of stable 429-nm light from a monolithic potassium niobate resonator with 108 mW of incident 858-nm power from an index guided GaAlAs laser. The performance characteristics of this blue source have been analyzed, and the blue output was found to have low amplitude noise and good beam quality, verified by focusing the blue light to a 0.4-μm FWHM spot size.
© 1990 Optical Society of America
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