Radiation-Balanced Lasers: History, Status, Potential
The review of history and progress on radiation-balanced (athermal) lasers is presented with a special focus on rare earth (RE)-doped lasers. In the majority of lasers, heat generated inside the laser medium is an unavoidable product of the lasing process. Radiation-balanced lasers can provide lasin...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2021-08-01
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| Series: | Applied Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/11/16/7539 |
| _version_ | 1797524718621818880 |
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| author | Galina Nemova |
| author_facet | Galina Nemova |
| author_sort | Galina Nemova |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The review of history and progress on radiation-balanced (athermal) lasers is presented with a special focus on rare earth (RE)-doped lasers. In the majority of lasers, heat generated inside the laser medium is an unavoidable product of the lasing process. Radiation-balanced lasers can provide lasing without detrimental heating of laser medium. This new approach to the design of optically pumped RE-doped solid-state lasers is provided by balancing the spontaneous and stimulated emission within the laser medium. It is based on the principle of anti-Stokes fluorescence cooling of RE-doped low-phonon solids. The theoretical description of the operation of radiation-balanced lasers based on the set of coupled rate equations is presented and discussed. It is shown that, for athermal operation, the value of the pump wavelength of the laser must exceed the value of the mean fluorescence wavelength of the RE laser active ions doped in the laser medium. The improved purity of host crystals and better control of the transverse intensity profile will result in improved performance of the radiation-balanced laser. Recent experimental achievements in the development of radiation-balanced RE-doped bulk lasers, fibre lasers, disk lasers, and microlasers are reviewed and discussed. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T09:01:14Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-478f05d307cc485bbc7784c427b2ae4f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-3417 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T09:01:14Z |
| publishDate | 2021-08-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Applied Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-478f05d307cc485bbc7784c427b2ae4f2023-11-22T06:43:09ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172021-08-011116753910.3390/app11167539Radiation-Balanced Lasers: History, Status, PotentialGalina Nemova0Department of Electrical Engineering, Polytechnique Montréal, 2500 ch. de Polytechnique, Montréal, QC H3T 1H4, CanadaThe review of history and progress on radiation-balanced (athermal) lasers is presented with a special focus on rare earth (RE)-doped lasers. In the majority of lasers, heat generated inside the laser medium is an unavoidable product of the lasing process. Radiation-balanced lasers can provide lasing without detrimental heating of laser medium. This new approach to the design of optically pumped RE-doped solid-state lasers is provided by balancing the spontaneous and stimulated emission within the laser medium. It is based on the principle of anti-Stokes fluorescence cooling of RE-doped low-phonon solids. The theoretical description of the operation of radiation-balanced lasers based on the set of coupled rate equations is presented and discussed. It is shown that, for athermal operation, the value of the pump wavelength of the laser must exceed the value of the mean fluorescence wavelength of the RE laser active ions doped in the laser medium. The improved purity of host crystals and better control of the transverse intensity profile will result in improved performance of the radiation-balanced laser. Recent experimental achievements in the development of radiation-balanced RE-doped bulk lasers, fibre lasers, disk lasers, and microlasers are reviewed and discussed.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/11/16/7539radiation-balanced lasersathermal laserssolid-state laserslaser cooling of solidsrare earth-doped materials |
| spellingShingle | Galina Nemova Radiation-Balanced Lasers: History, Status, Potential Applied Sciences radiation-balanced lasers athermal lasers solid-state lasers laser cooling of solids rare earth-doped materials |
| title | Radiation-Balanced Lasers: History, Status, Potential |
| title_full | Radiation-Balanced Lasers: History, Status, Potential |
| title_fullStr | Radiation-Balanced Lasers: History, Status, Potential |
| title_full_unstemmed | Radiation-Balanced Lasers: History, Status, Potential |
| title_short | Radiation-Balanced Lasers: History, Status, Potential |
| title_sort | radiation balanced lasers history status potential |
| topic | radiation-balanced lasers athermal lasers solid-state lasers laser cooling of solids rare earth-doped materials |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/11/16/7539 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT galinanemova radiationbalancedlasershistorystatuspotential |