Category: Custom Laser Solutions

Fiber laser systems offer simple solutions

Threat of incendiary balloons and drones

There is a strong necessity to design an effective protection system that allows the elimination of airborne incendiary devices. Balloons with attached incendiary materials, explosives, and munitions present a great threat because with them it is possible to burn fields, destroy plants, animal life, endanger civilians, and soldiers. The possible solution to the problem is the use of fiber laser systems.

Fiber lasers as an effective solution

Laser systems are considered to be a perfect solution that enables the elimination of balloons and drone threats, as well as precision missiles. Although the balloons or kites that moved across the border are pushed by the wind at a slower pace, the speed of the laser beams is regarded as much faster (even equal to the speed of light).

Accuracy and efficiency of fiber lasers

Fiber laser systems allow shooting down the incendiary balloons by a high-quality laser beam with high certainty and accuracy. Moreover, compared to conventional solutions, weapons based on fiber laser technology are considered to offer more efficiency and accuracy; the economic cost of applying laser systems is quite low in contrast to the high cost of conventional weapons.

History of laser-based defense systems

Israel was the first developer of laser beam weapons against Qassams and missiles. Israeli researchers developed laser systems in 1996 to protect the territory. Despite the great results, the fiber laser technology was not ideal enough and required future improvements. The increased manufacturing of high-speed and accurate missiles in large quantities leads to an urgent necessity for the improvement and creation of weapons based on fiber laser technology.

Current role and challenges

These laser systems play a crucial role because there is no substitute for them in the meantime. Additionally, the researchers confirm that they can overcome the challenges, for instance, when the effectiveness of fiber laser systems reduces under bad weather and atmospheric conditions, and on rainy and cloudy days, resulting in highly efficient protection.

That is why there is a current requirement to design powerful fiber lasers and to combine them with modern kinetic systems. The government of Israel plans to remove the threat of the tunnels by designing, developing, and manufacturing fiber laser energy weapon systems.

New multimode laser named OR-PAM

Introduction to OR-PAM and hybrid imaging

Scientists from Hong Kong have developed a new hybrid imaging technique that is called optical-resolution photoacoustic microscopy (OR-PAM). The system is based on a fiber laser with a highly concentrated laser beam. It consists of five wavelengths, which makes it highly effective in studies, and it can be employed in several fields.

Applications and functionality of OR-PAM

The OR-PAM can be applied mostly for multi-contrast functional imaging.

Development challenges

During the development, the research team faced certain restrictions, like the limited laser beam wavelength of most fiber lasers and the limitations of the scanning methods. To get better results, the scientists created a multimode laser based on a single-fiber wavelength nanosecond laser module source. It takes sub-microseconds to switch between different wavelengths that make multifunctional OR-PAM simultaneous.

Principle of operation

The whole fiber laser system is created based on the stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) effect. A fiber laser applies a laser beam with a longer wavelength than the usual one. The generated SRS wavelength remains at high rates when the energy of the laser beam source goes beyond the threshold. Photoacoustic imaging uses the fact that when a surface or tissue is illuminated by a laser beam, it absorbs the light and produces heat. The heat causes thermal expansion, which generates a photoacoustic (PA) wave or a mechanical ultrasonic wave. After that, the scientists can get an image that demonstrates the light absorption distribution.

Advantages of fiber laser-based OR-PAM

Medical applications

This invention, based on fiber laser technology, can be an enormous boon for medicine because it can make a multiparameter image for accounting for physiological parameters in vessels, like the diameter, depth, and more. That would help to make a disease model for research or treatment. With the help of this five-wavelength OR-PAM, the scientists could also get imaging of tumor development, lymphatic clearance, and brain imaging.

Subcellular measurements

This new system, based on the fiber laser, can also show the subcellular measures like hemoglobin concentration, blood flow speed, blood oxygen saturation, and lymphatic concentration. It allows the scientists to study disease models, for instance, cancer, and find new ways of treatments for it.

Challenges in developing multifunctional OR-PAM

The research team met two main problems while developing multifunctional OR-PAM. The first problem is that the microenvironment of blood vessels changes with time, so long-term scanning with a multimodal laser can cause some inaccuracy. The other problem is the asynchrony among the different laser sources, which may cause systematic errors in calculation. For this reason, they developed a multimode laser comprising five fiber lasers. This new system can produce multifunctional imaging with a single multimodal laser and in a single scan. It shortens the time for making an image and improves its accuracy.

A newly developed self-cooling fiber laser

Overview of the self-cooling fiber laser

The researchers from the UK produced a self-cooling fiber laser. This fiber laser is based on a silica fiber laser design. The scientists are going to create fiber laser-based devices that could achieve exceptional purity and frequency stability. That will allow avoiding the necessity of external cooling, for example, using a water-based cooling system. A self-cooling fiber laser with a silica fiber laser module can be applied for the development of progressive fiber laser systems. These fiber laser systems are useful for low-power, high-precision metrology and information transportation.

Mechanism of self-cooling

The cooling was successfully achieved when the researchers decreased the energy level of the light. The tests’ results demonstrate that the silica fiber laser module gets colder upon light excitation. The scientists also used anti-Stokes fluorescence to achieve cooling. This means the addition of a rare-earth ion to the fiber laser module. The ion absorbs the light from the laser beam and then produces it at a higher energy level. As a result, the fiber laser module temperature is getting lower. The process is a complicated task because of the ytterbium that is usually taken during the test. Ytterbium ions can take in impurity and release heat energy. This process is called “concentration quenching”. The researchers created a glass composition with the necessary quantity of ytterbium for the experiment to avoid this effect. The light frequency and its power were more stable because there were no changes in the temperature of the self-cooling of the fiber laser design. That helped to preserve the cooling effect.

Testing results and potential applications

The tests prove that the fiber laser system is capable of supporting high-power and large-scale laser applications in terms of increasing performance efficiency. There were also developed two additional silica fiber laser applications. The scientists intensified the laser beam at the same time, preserving the negative average temperature change.

Future improvements

According to the researchers who developed these constructions, there is still a lot to improve in the future. The extraction percentage, as well as the level of efficiency, is at a low level. That’s why this newly developed technology can’t be implemented and needs some time for adoption for high-power laser applications.

The development of new ultrafast fiber laser systems

Applications of ultrafast fiber lasers

The development of ultrafast fiber laser systems over the past century has enabled a wide range of applications. Fiber laser technology is used in medical and industrial fields, from cancer diagnosis to 3D nanoprinting. Compact fiber laser modules are now making many tasks in everyday life easier.

Impact on everyday life

Advances in ultrafast fiber lasers have driven significant technical innovation. Scientists have improved the quality, lifetime, and cost of key components such as beam combiners, Bragg fiber filters, modulators, and detectors. Today, doped fibers for multimode pumping are commercially available, allowing single-mode output at higher powers. This technology supports high-power fiber laser systems used in industrial manufacturing.

Design and advantages of ultrafast fiber lasers

Ultrafast fiber lasers are now compact, often appearing as small black boxes. Manufacturers can easily integrate them into diverse devices. Their small size, rugged construction, and high reliability make them suitable for both industrial and medical applications. They also offer excellent stability.

Compactness and scalability

Fiber laser designs provide high gain while remaining compact. Even low-power ultrafast fiber lasers can serve as building blocks for higher-power systems and deliver output across multiple wavelengths.

Advances in two-photon microscopy

A recent German development applies ultrafast fiber lasers in two-photon microscopy using near-IR femtosecond pulses. This allows high-resolution imaging of human skin, known as multiphoton tomography. Earlier laser systems required water cooling, complex delivery arms, and were costly and bulky. Ultrafast fiber lasers simplify the operation, eliminating water cooling and allowing easy movement around a dermatology suite.

Technical challenges

The small diameter of the fiber core presents challenges in generating ultrafast optical pulses. Pulse energies must be carefully managed, balancing chromatic dispersion and nonlinear effects. A reliable starting mechanism is also essential for consistent performance.

Main development challenges for multi kilowatt fiber lasers

Stimulated Raman scattering in multi-kilowatt fiber lasers

Definition and impact

According to scientists, stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) remains a development challenge for multi-kilowatt fiber lasers. To advance fiber laser technology toward higher-power systems while maintaining high-quality beams, manufacturers need to adopt effective SRS mitigation strategies.

Nonlinear phenomenon

Stimulated Raman scattering is a nonlinear effect. It occurs when the optical intensity exceeds a threshold value. Since a portion of the energy in the fiber laser is lost to SRS, this effect limits the achievable output power.

Optical feedback challenges

Causes and effects

Optical feedback reflected from the workpiece can lead to serious problems, such as fiber laser instabilities or damage to pump diodes. Instabilities in output power or beam quality can affect industrial processes and reduce product quality. Maintaining reliable and stable operation is essential for industrial fiber laser applications.

Transverse mode instability

Description of the effect

Even with progress in SRS management, the output power of single-mode fiber lasers rarely exceeds a few kilowatts. Transverse mode instability (TMI) is another nonlinear effect that impacts multi-kilowatt system development. TMI occurs suddenly when the average power threshold is reached, causing beam quality degradation.

Suppression and trade-offs

TMI has been studied for a long time, allowing researchers to develop effective suppression methods. However, reducing TMI can interfere with SRS suppression. Therefore, it is important to find a balance while considering reliability and technological limits.

Ongoing development and solutions

Power optimization

Fiber lasers can operate beyond the SRS threshold using current mitigation approaches. A comprehensive solution does not yet exist, so ongoing research continues to improve understanding and performance at multi-kilowatt levels. Challenges remain to achieve reliable, highly efficient industrial fiber lasers.

The development of the unique soliton fiber laser

Global importance of fiber laser technology

Fiber laser technology is an advanced field of modern science, with researchers from various countries actively developing new solutions. Last year, scientists in Russia demonstrated a newly developed and successfully tested soliton fiber laser.

Russian researchers highlighted that fiber lasers are fundamentally important for scientific progress worldwide. Fiber lasers with high pulse repetition rates are particularly in demand in photonics, a promising counterpart to electronics.

Unique features of the soliton fiber laser

Double pulse stabilization and compact design

The newly developed soliton fiber laser features double pulse stabilization, compactness, reliability, and convenient laser beam delivery. Its design relies on fiber optics, which allow part of the energy to be emitted into the laser cavity. Double synchronization aligns the phases of longitudinal waves, producing ultra-short, powerful pulses. After several radiation cycles, the pulses form stable solitons.

High-frequency pulses and pulse train quality

Due to double stabilization, scientists developed a fiber laser that combines high-frequency pulses with a high-quality pulse train. The design uses nonlinear polarization rotation and frequency shift effects generated by an optical modulator. This allows harmonic synchronization of longitudinal waves in any generation mode. The next goal is to further enhance the fiber laser’s performance.

Fiber laser history and applications

Development milestones

Since the creation of the first fiber laser, the technology has proven highly effective across multiple fields. For example, fiber lasers revolutionized ophthalmology just three years after their introduction. At each stage, challenges were addressed in medicine, industry, quantum computing, fundamental science, and more. Today, fiber laser systems have a wide range of applications.

New types of fiber lasers continuously open up unique and previously unforeseen applications. Advancements in fiber laser technology play a key role in scientific and applied research success.

Forecast for fiber laser weapon system market

Market growth and technological improvements

According to specialists, the fiber laser weapon system market is expected to grow by 19.3% from 2021 to 2028. This growth is driven by technological improvements in fiber laser weapon systems and advancements in fiber laser technology, leading to high-energy weapons with an extended range.

Contributions of laser weapon companies

Laser weapon companies significantly contributed to fiber laser technology by developing new systems and demonstrating improved versions with better performance. For example, specialists created a fiber laser system for the US Navy by combining three components — laser weapon, long-range ISR, and counter-UAS capabilities — enhancing situational awareness and layered defense. As a result, evolving fiber laser designs offer customers more options and expand the market volume.

Impact of COVID-19 on the fiber laser market

COVID-19 greatly affected all economic sectors, including fiber laser weapon systems. North America, especially the USA, was the most impacted. Experts estimate that the defense equipment manufacturing industry faced 4–12 weeks of delays in the military supply chain, which disrupted production in 2020. However, the recovery of the defense industry is expected to be faster than in other military sectors, despite delays in modernization projects.

Fiber laser system design and advantages

Fiber lasers consist of three-layer optical fiber, where light from diode lasers is pumped into the core. The laser light travels along the fiber with multiple internal reflections. Due to their compact size, fiber laser systems are suitable for ships, ground vehicles, and helicopters, while offering extremely high power.

Customizability and efficiency

They are also easily customizable and provide cleaner, more efficient solutions. These advantages are expected to boost demand and drive market growth. Despite supply chain disruptions and economic challenges that reduced export revenue, the development of trade relations is likely to restore the fiber laser market position.

Fiber lasers for aesthetic treatments

Fiber Lasers’ Medicine Applications

Fiber lasers have rapidly become one of the most popular instruments due to their numerous benefits. They have impacted many areas, including industry and science. Medicine is no exception.

Laser modules are widely used in medicine, from diagnostics to micro-cutting in surgery. The advancement of fiber laser technology has simplified procedures for both medical personnel and patients in urology, spinal surgery, brain treatment, ophthalmology, and more.

The first commercially available fiber lasers enabled their use in multiple fields. High demand arose as healthcare required improvements, driving rapid growth and innovation in fiber laser technology.

Fiber lasers are also used in aesthetic treatments such as skin resurfacing and tattoo removal, which require high-energy lasers. Previously, CO2 lasers dominated this area, but recent studies confirm the effectiveness of fiber lasers. Their use in cosmetic and plastic procedures offers lower risk and excellent results. This non-invasive method requires minimal recovery time. Overall, fiber lasers are unique light sources with significant performance advantages.

The versatility of fiber lasers makes them effective across many areas. Key advantages include: high precision; contactless operation; compact size; high efficiency; excellent beam quality; and cost-effectiveness.

Low-power fiber laser systems in medicine

Overview of low-power fiber lasers

Nowadays, fiber laser systems show significant growth and advantages in industries such as aerospace and automotive.

Less powerful fiber lasers have also found applications. One such field is medicine, which benefits from fiber lasers in various treatments and procedures.

This article focuses on two of these applications: photoacoustic imaging and tissue engineering.

Fiber lasers for photoacoustic imaging

Fiber laser systems play a crucial role in photoacoustic imaging and suit this technology due to their compact size and high sensitivity. The sensors with fiber lasers resist environmental disturbances such as temperature and pressure changes. Fiber lasers resolved several issues present in traditional sensors.

Photoacoustic imaging is commonly used for endoscopy and intravascular applications, requiring highly precise fiber laser-based sensors.

Photoacoustic tomography, a branch of photoacoustic imaging, provides high-resolution, non-invasive imaging. It is widely accepted by specialists and patients and is of high interest due to its applications in life sciences and disease diagnosis.

Overall, photoacoustic imaging has great potential for medical treatments compared to electrical ultrasound. Modern fiber laser modules and sensors are powerful instruments for this technique.

Fiber lasers for tissue engineering

Another development area of fiber laser systems is tissue engineering. Modern fiber laser technology allows creating biological systems by arranging biomaterials and living cells.

Role of fiber lasers in tissue engineering

Tissue engineering would not be possible without precise and robust technology. Modern fiber lasers use contemporary computer technologies to structure living and nonliving materials. This technology enables precise manipulation of cells and complex tissue constructions, which are applied in cell biology studies, regenerative medicine, and more.

Tissue engineering combines engineering and life science principles. It develops alternatives to improve or restore tissues or organs. The goal is to build artificial solutions that closely imitate natural biological environments, allowing cells to function in artificial or real tissue.

Future development of tissue engineering technology

In the future, scientists aim to design artificial biological structures that are highly functional with cells arranged at high temporal and spatial resolution. Cell engineering will use interactions of different cell types to create microenvironments closely resembling real organs.

Recent applications of fiber laser systems demonstrate unique features in regenerative medicine and other medical devices.

Today, advanced fiber laser systems enable precise manipulation and imaging. Specialists can apply modern fiber laser technology in medical fields such as photoacoustic imaging and tissue engineering.

Utilizing Nd:YAG Q-switched Lasers in Solid-State Laser Technology

Introduction to Q-Switching

Q-switching technique is usually utilized in solid-state laser technology to generate nanosecond high energy pulses. It creates short pulses through regulating cavity losses. Q factor (quality factor) is a definition of an oscillation damping strength measurement.

Types of Q-Switching

There are two types of q-switching: passive and active.

Active Q-Switching

Active q-switching technique uses an electrically controlled modulator (acousto-optic or electro-optic). It is applied to control optical losses which are high initially, but in the process of switching they are lowered abruptly. Pump phase and the gain-medium upper-state lifetime should be roughly the same to avoid losing energy in spontaneous emissions. Energy loss through spontaneous emissions becomes significant when laser gain is high. However, it is not the biggest concern when it comes to bulk lasers. A bigger issue is parasitic lasing because of unwanted reflections or q-switch. To avert the lasing a modulator should have a high pump phase when performing power losses.
It is possible to design smaller mode area lasers when the energy per pulse and energy stored are lowered due to high pulse repetition rates (10 kHz, 100 kHz or more). However, high repetition rates create another issue – collecting enough laser gain even when stored energy is low, because when the gain is low pulses become longer. Even in case of high average powers it can still be problematic, because it may need bigger beam areas. That is why it is better to select a crystal providing a higher laser gain, for example, Nd:YVO4.

Passive Q-Switching

Passive q-switching technique uses a saturable absorber instead of an electrical modulator. There is a high optical loss when it is in the unsaturated state. To start the lasing a laser gain has to reduce that loss. When the emission increases, it saturates losses, and the laser power grows fast, which leads to the gain saturation.
It may give an impression that it is poor because of the absorption; however this is not the case. Just a little portion of energy is required for an absorber transparency, when the laser gain medium saturation energy is higher than the absorber energy. One of the most common crystals used in this case is Nd:YAG.
The pumping in a passive q-switched laser continues up to a moment when a pulse build up begins. This process begins when there is enough energy stored in the gain medium. The main difference between passive and active q-switching technique is that in case of a passive one the pumping power change does not affect the energy pulse, it will only effect the timing. In active q-switching technique both will be affected, the energy pulse and timing.