Abstract
We present breakthrough pulse energy performance (up to 300 μJ) from monolithic fiber-optic femtosecond laser systems that are developed for industrial materials processing. Whereas previous chirped pulse amplification (CPA) systems have implemented fiber-optic gain elements within free-space oscillator-amplifier circuits [1-3], we present monolithic fiber-optic CPA systems—where the mode-locked oscillator, pulse stretcher, pulse shaper, pulse picker, and all amplifier stages are comprised of fusion spliced fiber devices— emitting up to 300 μJ compressed pulse output with duration <500 fs (FWHM). This is a 6 times higher pulse energy than previously reported for monolithic fiber femtosecond lasers [4,5]. Higher femtosecond pulse energy enables cutting and drilling through thicker materials, at faster rates, without imposing a heat affected zone (HAZ). Generating this femtosecond beam with a monolithic fiber-optic system provides the most compact and stable form factor, suitable for industrial work cell integration and global factory deployment.
© 2013 IEEE
PDF ArticleMore Like This
M. Mielke, X. Peng, K. Kim, D. Gaudiosi, M. Greenberg, T. Booth, W. Lee, G. Masor, X. Gu, R. Lu, M. Hamamoto, R. Cline, J. Nicholson, J. Fini, X. Liu, A. DeSantolo, P. Westbrook, R. Windeler, E. Monberg, F. DiMarcello, C. Headley, and D. DiGiovanni
ATh4A.3 Advanced Solid State Lasers (ASSL) 2013
Xiang Peng, Kyungbum Kim, Wangkuen Lee, Michael Mielke, Tao Luo, Lei Pan, Qing Wang, and Shibin Jiang
AW4A.3 Advanced Solid State Lasers (ASSL) 2014
P. Malevich, G. Andriukaitis, T. Flöry, A. J. Verhoef, A. Fernandez, S. Ališauskas, A. Pugžlys, A. Baltuška, L. H. Tan, C. F. Chua, and P. B. Phua
CTh3H.5 CLEO: Science and Innovations (CLEO:S&I) 2013