Français
2. Inconsistent combination techniques
The fundamental principle of laser combination is based on the addition of the powers emitted by several single laser sources. The first approach to consider is therefore laser beam stacking, where several laser beams are aligned so that they illuminate the same area of a target or object, or of the environment to be measured. The total added power of the lasers is then theoretically equal to the sum of the powers emitted by each laser.
However, this reasoning is only true if the laser beams do not interfere in the plane where they overlap. Many laser beams are highly coherent, i.e. all photons emitted by a single laser source share the same wavelength, polarization and phase. If all laser sources are identical, they also share the same wavelength and polarization. As a result, they will interfere by superimposing each other, generating an interference pattern made...
The Ultimate Scientific and Technical Reference
This article is included in
Optics and photonics
This offer includes:
Knowledge Base
Updated and enriched with articles validated by our scientific committees
Services
A set of exclusive tools to complement the resources
Practical Path
Operational and didactic, to guarantee the acquisition of transversal skills
Doc & Quiz
Interactive articles with quizzes, for constructive reading
Inconsistent combination techniques
Coherent combination techniques
Bibliography
Bibliography
Events
SPIE conference – Photonics West: every year in San Francisco http://spie.org/conferences-and-exhibitions/photonics-west
SPIE conference – Defense and Security: held annually in the United States
Standards and norms
Laser safety standards to be applied when using lasers, whether combined or not:
- Safety of laser products – Part 1: Equipment classification and requirements - IEC 60825-1 - 2014
- AFNOR Safety of laser equipment – Part 1: Equipment classification and requirements - NF EN 60825-1 - 2014
The French AFNOR standard is an officially validated translation by AFNOR of the IEC...
Directory
Companies developing high-power combination lasers
This list is by no means exhaustive, but includes some of the main industrial players in the development of high-power laser sources incorporating combination technologies, often for military applications.
Boeing (United States) http://www.boeing.com/defense/
...
The Ultimate Scientific and Technical Reference
