Laser damage testing of optical components under cryogenic conditions

Jindřich Oulehla; Pavel Pokorný; Josef Lazar

doi:10.1117/12.2010580

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18 December 2012 Laser damage testing of optical components under cryogenic conditions

Jindřich Oulehla, Pavel Pokorný, Josef Lazar

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Proceedings Volume 8697, 18th Czech-Polish-Slovak Optical Conference on Wave and Quantum Aspects of Contemporary Optics; 86971B (2012) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2010580
Event: 18th Czech-Polish-Slovak Optical Conference on Wave and Quantum Aspects of Contemporary Optics, 2012, Ostravice, Czech Republic

Abstract

In this contribution we present a technology for deposition and testing of interference coatings for optical components designed to operate in power pulsed lasers. The aim of the technology is to prepare components for high power laser facilities such as ELI (Extreme Light Infrastructure) or HiLASE. ELI is a part of the Eropean plan to build a new generation of large research facilities selected by the the Eropean Strategy Forum for Research Infrastructures (ESFRI). These facilities rely on the use of diode pumped solid state lasers (DPSSL). The choice of the material or the lasers' optical components is critical. Some of the most important properties include the ability to be antireflection and high reflection coated to reduce the energy losses and increase the overall efficiency. As large amounts of hear need to be dissipated during laser operation, cryogenic cooling is necessary. The conducted experiments served as preliminary tests of laser damage threshold measurement methodology that we plan to use in the future. We designed a special apparatus consistion of a vacuum chamber an a cooling system. The samples were placed into the vacuum chamber which was evacuated and them the samples were cooled down to approximately 120K and illuminated by a pulsed laser. Pulse duration was in the nanosecond region. Multiple test sites on the sample's surface were used for different laser pulse energies. We used optical and electron microscopy and spectrophotometer measurements for coating investigation after the conducted experiments.

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Jindřich Oulehla, Pavel Pokorný, and Josef Lazar "Laser damage testing of optical components under cryogenic conditions", Proc. SPIE 8697, 18th Czech-Polish-Slovak Optical Conference on Wave and Quantum Aspects of Contemporary Optics, 86971B (18 December 2012); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2010580

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