Laser-pumped compound waveguide lasers and amplifiers
Patent 6160824 Issued on December 12, 2000. Estimated Expiration Date: November 2, 2018. Estimated Expiration Date is calculated based on simple USPTO term provisions. It does not account for terminal disclaimers, term adjustments, failure to pay maintenance fees, or other factors which might affect the term of a patent.
372/7, THIN FILM LASER372/10, Q-switch372/11, Absorption type372/19, Mode discrimination372/34, PARTICULAR TEMPERATURE CONTROL372/39, PARTICULAR ACTIVE MEDIA372/55, Gas372/64, Waveguide372/70, Pumping with optical or radiant energy372/105Birefringent material
A compound planar waveguide comprising multiple confinement structures that provides independent containment of pump and laser radiation. The waveguide may be formed of multiple layers of laser-active and laser-inactive materials to provide step changes in refractive index. The planar waveguide may include a central laserable core layer substantially sandwiched by at least two non-laserable cladding layers to provide an interface between the inner surfaces of the cladding layers and the gain medium core to define a first waveguide by virtue of an index of refraction discontinuity for containing developed laser radiation, and wherein the outer surfaces of the cladding layers define a second waveguide by virtue of an index of refraction discontinuity for containing pump radiation within the waveguide. The second waveguide may be also defined by an interface formed between the cladding layers and additional non-laserable external layers which sandwich the cladding layers. The laser waveguide provides confinement of developed laser radiation which may be independently configured from the waveguide structure that confines the pump radiation. The planar waveguide layers may be also optically bonded together and consist of different optical quality crystals or glass.
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November 2, 2018. Estimated Expiration Date is calculated based on simple USPTO term provisions. It does not account for terminal disclaimers, term adjustments, failure to pay maintenance fees, or other factors which might affect the term of a patent.
