OPTIGRATE CORPORATION — Department of Defense STTR Phase I: The general objective of this proposal is to design a self-stabilized monolithic single fr

Description

The general objective of this proposal is to design a self-stabilized monolithic single frequency solid state laser. The main advantage of the approach is based on the integration of a laser cavity within active laser material - Nd-doped photo-thermo-refractive (PTR) glass, which allows constructing narrow line unidirectional, environmental insensitive laser. This glass possesses both properties of high efficiency gain medium and phase photosensitive medium for volume hologram recording. Therefore, it is possible to record a resonator consisting from two (or several) Bragg mirrors inside of a laser glass slab. Such a resonator cannot be misaligned. Thick Bragg mirrors will enable single frequency and single transverse mode regime. This slab will be pumped by a low noise narrow band semiconductor laser with emission wavelength stabilized by an external Bragg resonator. Such a Nd-doped PTR Bragg laser would be completely monolithic as semiconductor or fiber laser. However, it will possess compactness of semiconductor emitter combined with emission properties of solid state or fiber lasers. Development of PTR glass modification with decreased sensitivity to the thermal fluctuations inducing the change of the light pass length will allow reaching high frequency stability already at room temperature.