Abstract
The effects of moderate monomer purification before polymerization on the bulk laser-damage properties of polymethyl methacrylate were studied with 1.06-μm-wavelength, 8-nsec-FWHM, 33-μm spot-radius pulses from a Q-switched Nd:YAG laser. The results show that monomer purification can more than double the single-shot damage threshold and significantly raise the one-pulse-per-second low-level multiple-shot damage asymptote of the material. Scattered, depolarized helium–neon laser light and certain characteristics of the single- and multipleshot data strongly suggest that removal of micrometer-sized dust is the primary cause of the improved damage resistance in the purified material.
© 1984 Optical Society of America
Full Article | PDF ArticleMore Like This
Robert M. O’Connell, Terrence F. Deaton, and Theodore T. Saito
Appl. Opt. 23(5) 682-688 (1984)
R. Srinivasan, B. Braren, R. W. Dreyfus, L. Hadel, and D. E. Seeger
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 3(5) 785-791 (1986)
M. J. Bowden, E. A. Chandross, and I. P. Kaminow
Appl. Opt. 13(1) 112-117 (1974)