Face-pumped laser with diffraction-limited output beam

摘要

Diffraction-limited output beam quality is achieved with a laser having an elongated homogeneous active medium pumped through two optically plane, parallel faces 11, 12, and situated within a resonant cavity defined by a plane reflector 22 at one end and a concave spherical reflector 21 at the opposite end. For a ray of optical energy passing through the active medium, the effective optical length of the medium is greater in the plane of reflection than in a plane perpendicular to the plane of reflection and containing the ray, and separation between the reflectors is selected to form a stable resonator in the plane of reflection but unstable in the plane perpendicular to the plane of reflection and containing the ray. IMAGE