what is laser pulse shaping?

[jjoll]

And how can I change the pulse shaping in a laser machine independent of machine itself. Meaning that I do have a laser machine that doesn't allow me to vary laser pulse shaping, can I use any kind of mirror to connect to it in order to change the pulse shaping?

thanks

 

[IRstuff]

I think that anything that could have been done would end at the output of the resonator. Why do you need to change the pulse shape? Most cutting applications don't really care.

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[jjoll]

I am not using for a cutting application, i need to run some tests on crystals. By the way, what is laser pulse shaping?

 

[MacGyverS2000]

It's exactly what it says, you change the shape of the output pulse. You might go from a sharp impulse with a long fadeout to a more square pulse, etc.

Why are you trying to shape the pulse?

Dan - Owner

http://www.Hi-TecDesigns.com

 

[IRstuff]

The typical laser pulse is supposed to be Gaussian in the time domain as well, but it rarely is.

Pulsed lasers typically have Q switches and there is voltage shaping that can be done to the switching voltage to modify the pulse, but for short pulses, there's not much that can really be done, since everything is running at its maximum speed already. Any pulse that's short relative to the laser resonator path length is pretty much fixed.

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[jjoll]

thanks everyone,

Dan, I am trying to change pulse shaping since I need to investigate how change in pulse shaping affects my samples.

How in general pulse shaping affects the laser? does it increases the power delivered?

thanks again in advance

 

[IRstuff]

Depends on how you want it shaped, how short the pulse is, how it's actually generated, etc.

Energy is conserved, but generally, any perturbation tends to reduce output energy.


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[jjoll]

Thank you.

 

[Timelord]

What kind of laser are you pulsing? It makes a big difference. If it is Q switched, there is not much you can do. With CO2 pulse lasers, shaping the electrical input pulse can control the optical pulse somewhat. The laser cavity has to be designed specifically for an application like this. Shaping the electrical pulse is done with a HV pulse forming network.

Timelord

 

[MacGyverS2000]

And fiber lasers can have a drastic effect on processing capabilities with shaping. Short, hot pulses will hog out a lot of material... long, cool pulses can grow oxides. It all depends upon what you want to do.

Dan - Owner

http://www.Hi-TecDesigns.com