Photophysical properties, photodegradation characteristics, and lasing action for coumarin dye C540A in polymeric media

Guilford Jones II; Zhennian Huang; Dennis P. Pacheco Jr.; Jeffrey A. Russell

doi:10.1117/12.534251

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8 July 2004 Photophysical properties, photodegradation characteristics, and lasing action for coumarin dye C540A in polymeric media

Guilford Jones II, Zhennian Huang, Dennis P. Pacheco Jr., Jeffrey A. Russell

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Proceedings Volume 5332, Solid State Lasers XIII: Technology and Devices; (2004) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.534251
Event: Lasers and Applications in Science and Engineering, 2004, San Jose, Ca, United States

Abstract

Tunable solid-state dye lasers operating in the blue-green spectral region are attractive for a variety of applications. An important consideration in assessing the viability of this technology is the service life of the gain medium, which is presently limited by dye photodegradation. In this study, solid polymeric samples consisting of the coumarin dye C540A in modified PMMA were subjected to controlled photodegradation tests. The excitation laser was a flashlamp-pumped dye laser operating at 440 nm with a pulse duration of 1 μs. A complementary set of data was obtained for dye in solution phase for comparison purposes. Photophysical properties of C540A in water solution of polymethacrylic acid (PMAA) have been investigated with a view to assess the suitability of the sequestering polymer (PMAA) as an effective additive to facilitate use of a water medium for highly efficient blue-green dye lasers. Lasing action of C540A in aqueous PMAA has been realized using flashlamp-pumped laser system, yielding excellent laser efficiencies superior to that achieved in ethanolic solutions with the same dye. Laser characterization of dye in media included measurement of laser threshold, slope efficiency, pulse duration and output wavelength.

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Guilford Jones II, Zhennian Huang, Dennis P. Pacheco Jr., and Jeffrey A. Russell "Photophysical properties, photodegradation characteristics, and lasing action for coumarin dye C540A in polymeric media", Proc. SPIE 5332, Solid State Lasers XIII: Technology and Devices, (8 July 2004); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.534251

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