Optical element and its fabrication for constructing a high-performance laser system

摘要

This invention relates to the preparation of solid-state optical active media (especially monocrystalline) with added optically active centres (dopants) and their use in performance optical amplifiers, lasers in particular. It utilizes a concentration gradient of optically active dopants previously perceived as a negative side effect of the preparation of laser monocrystalline materials; it reaches the optically homogeneous performance of the active media on passing optical laser beam by an appropriate geometrical arrangement of the elements of at least one pair of mutually centrosymmetrical or rotationally symmetrical active optical elements. From a grown solid-state laser gain medium having a crystal growth axis (2) and a dopant concentration gradient (4) along the growth axis (2) the top and bottom parts are removed allowing inspection of the medium along the two ends (1). The medium is for example Nd:YAG. Laser discs (D1,D2) are cut along a direction (3) parallel to the growth axis (2) and the two laser discs are joined together with opposite dopant concentration gradients (4) thereby providing a laser disc with reduced dopant concentration inhomogeneities seen by an optical beam (5). A larger part of a laser boule can be used for production of laser discs or slabs having integrated equal laser dopant concentration.