Coherent has introduced an infrared version of its Verdi family of solid-state lasers, which deliver 25W of single-mode CW output at 1064nm.
The Verdi IR 25 laser has the same diode-pumped, solid-state unidirectional ring-resonator design found in all Verdi lasers.
Its single longitudinal-mode output features low-noise of 0.04 per cent RMS, narrow-linewidth (<2.5 MHz FWHM) and a coherence length greater than 60 metres.
In addition, a piezo-actuated resonator mirror enables the output frequency to be tuned over a range >3.2 GHz and/or to be locked to an external reference cavity.
The bandwidth for piezo control is DC to 20 kHz.
Outstanding beam-pointing stability (<2 urad/degC) and beam quality (M<1.1) eliminate the need for frequent adjustments of the beam and simplify laser alignment.
The natural stability of this single-mode design means that the output power can be smoothly varied over a 15 to 25W range without mode-hops.
No other CW infrared laser offers this combination of power and stability.
In addition, the output is polarised with an extinction ratio greater than 100:1.
Applications for the Verdi IR 25 include optical trapping of atoms, where its low noise and mode-hop-free operation enables atom trapping for extended times.
The high output power means a single Verdi IR laser can generate several traps simultaneously.
Other applications include optical tweezers, optical/semiconductor material development and remote optical sensing.
In addition, the low noise and high power make the Verdi IR 25 an ideal source for harmonic generation and pumping mid-infrared optical parametric oscillators (OPO) for high-resolution molecular spectroscopy.
