Particular Active Media Patents (Class 372/39)
  • Patent number: 8175132
    Abstract: A laser device which causes lasing with a use of a semiconductor quantum dot is provided with: a laser member (11) in which the semiconductor quantum dot is formed; a resonator (14) for resonating light generated in the laser member (11); and a pump laser (15) for irradiating the laser member (11) with excitation light whose energy corresponds to two-photon resonant excitation, so as to form a biexciton state in the semiconductor quantum dot by the two-photon resonant excitation. In this way, a laser device which enables lasing using efficient light emission is realized.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 11, 2004
    Date of Patent: May 8, 2012
    Assignee: Japan Science and Technology Agency
    Inventors: Tadashi Itoh, Masaaki Ashida
  • Publication number: 20120063478
    Abstract: Provided is a surface plasmon band-edge laser including a gain media having quantum dots configured to enable laser oscillation using surface plasmon resonance. The gain media has a periodic structure and is formed on a metal surface.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 27, 2011
    Publication date: March 15, 2012
    Applicant: SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Yeonsang PARK
  • Patent number: 8107035
    Abstract: Displays such as LCD panels are illuminated using frequency-doubled vertical extended cavity surface emitting lasers (VECSELs) as efficient light sources. Visible light from the VECSELs are directed to an illuminating panel using optical fibers and/or optical gratings to provide substantially uniform illumination of the illuminating panel. Visible light from the illuminating panel, which can be provided at a particular number of primary wavelengths by the VECSELs, is then used to illuminate the display.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 18, 2008
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2012
    Assignee: Necsel Intellectual Property
    Inventors: Chris Stuart, Allen Massie Earman, Greg Niven
  • Publication number: 20120014402
    Abstract: A laser module LM is provided with a quantum cascade laser 1, a tubular member 5, and an infrared detector 7. The tubular member 5 has a pair of opening ends 5a, 5b and is arranged so that one opening end 5a is opposed to a face 1b opposed to an emitting end face 1a of the quantum cascade laser 1. The infrared detector 7 is arranged so as to be opposed to the other opening end 5b of the tubular member 5. Light emitted from the face (rear end face) 1b opposed to the emitting end face (front end face) 1a of the quantum cascade laser 1 is guided inside the tubular member 5 to enter the infrared detector 7, and then is detected.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 21, 2010
    Publication date: January 19, 2012
    Applicant: Hamamatsu Photonics K.K.
    Inventors: Takahide Ochiai, Naota Akikusa, Tadataka Edamura, Hirofumi Kan
  • Patent number: 8098700
    Abstract: A laser system employing amplification via a single exciton regime and to optical gain media having single exciton amplification is provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 15, 2008
    Date of Patent: January 17, 2012
    Assignee: Los Alamos National Security, LLC
    Inventors: Victor I. Klimov, Sergei A. Ivanov
  • Patent number: 8085828
    Abstract: A portable laser source includes a flash lamp assembly defining a hollow central channel, an elongate laser rod extending within the hollow channel for receiving a flash of light emitted by the surrounding flash lamp assembly, and a hermetically-sealed enclosure housing both the flash lamp assembly and the laser rod and including at least one optical transmission window for transmitting a laser beam emitted by the laser rod. Preferably, the flash lamp assembly is hermetically-sealed from the laser rod within the enclosure to maintain physical and electrical isolation of the laser rod from combustible and electrically conductive components of the flash lamp assembly. The combustible component of the flash lamp assembly can include Zr wool and an accelerant, or like materials for emitting a flash of light. The laser source can include a second window used to test the condition of the laser rod via application of an external test light to activate the laser rod within the sealed enclosure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 7, 2010
    Date of Patent: December 27, 2011
    Assignees: Pollack Laboratories, Inc., Alliant Techsystems Inc.
    Inventors: Richard A. DiDomizio, Michael J. Pollack, William A. Rollin, Neal Edwin Wilson, Craig A. Kesner, James Edward Phillips, Jr., Christopher Hollandsworth, Brian J. Padovini
  • Publication number: 20110286476
    Abstract: A laser gain medium crystal comprising a square rod of laser gain medium material having top and bottom surfaces that are finely ground to introduce scattering surfaces to cancel parasitic lasing. The square rod of laser gain material has input and output faces and side surfaces, and portions of the side surfaces near the output face of the square rod are finely ground to introduce scattering surfaces to cancel parasitic lasing. The rest of the side surfaces of the square rod are polished.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 19, 2010
    Publication date: November 24, 2011
    Applicant: United States of America, as represented by the Secretary of the Army
    Inventors: John E. Nettleton, Dallas N. Barr
  • Publication number: 20110274129
    Abstract: Cylindrical optical components of quartz glass are known, which have an inner zone made of an inner zone glass, which extends in the direction of the longitudinal axis and is surrounded by a jacket zone made of a jacket zone glass, the average pt wall thickness thereof varying at least over a part of its length in the direction of the longitudinal axis of the component. The aim of the invention is to provide a method that allows a simple and cost-effective production of such an optical component from quartz glass.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 2, 2009
    Publication date: November 10, 2011
    Applicant: Hreaeus Quarzglas GmbH & Co. KG
    Inventors: Peter Bauer, Karsten Braeuer, Marco Flach, Andreas Langner, Richard Schmidt, Clemens Schmitt, Gerhard Schoetz, Matthias Stecher
  • Publication number: 20110266470
    Abstract: In one exemplary embodiment, an apparatus can be provided which includes at least one biological medium that causes gain. According to another exemplary embodiment, an arrangement can be provided which is configured to be provided in an anatomical structure. This exemplary arrangement can include at least one emitter having a cross-sectional area of at most 10 microns within the anatomical structure, and which is configured to generate at least one laser radiation. In a further exemplary embodiment, an apparatus can be provided which can include at least one medium which is configured to cause gain; and at least one optical biological resonator which is configured to provide an optical feedback to the medium. In still another exemplary embodiment, a process can be whereas, a solution of an optical medium can be applied to a substrate.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 3, 2010
    Publication date: November 3, 2011
    Applicant: The General Hospital Corporation
    Inventors: Seok-Hyun Yun, Malte C. Gather
  • Patent number: 8050303
    Abstract: A laser gain medium. The novel laser gain medium includes a host material, a plurality of quantum dots dispersed throughout the host material, and a plurality of laser active ions surrounding each of the quantum dots. The laser active ions are disposed in close proximity to the quantum dots such that energy absorbed by the quantum dots is non-radiatively transferred to the ions via a Forster resonant energy transfer, thereby exciting the ions to produce laser output. In an illustrative embodiment, each quantum dot is surrounded by an external shell doped with the laser active ions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 12, 2006
    Date of Patent: November 1, 2011
    Assignees: Raytheon Company, Evident Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Kalin Spariosu, Alexander A. Betin, Michael LoCascio, Wei Liu
  • Patent number: 8021636
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method of preparing a polycrystalline block of a halide of formula AeLnfX(3f+e) in which Ln represents one or more rare earths, X represents one or more halogen atoms selected from the group consisting of Cl, Br and I, and A represents one or more alkali metals selected from the group consisting of K, Li, Na, Rb and Cs, e, which may be zero, being less than or equal to 3f, and f being greater than or equal to 1, having a low water and oxyhalide content, in which the method comprises heating a mixture of, on the one hand, at least one compound having at least one Ln—X bond and, on the other hand, a sufficient amount of NH4X in order to obtain the oxyhalide content, resulting in a molten mass comprising the rare-earth halide, the heating being followed by cooling, and the heating, after having reached 300° C., never going below 200° C. before the molten mass has been obtained.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 2009
    Date of Patent: September 20, 2011
    Assignee: Saint-Gobain Cristaux et Detecteurs
    Inventor: Alain Iltis
  • Patent number: 8002413
    Abstract: There is provided a light source unit which includes a luminescent light source which receives excitation light so as to emit light of a predetermined wavelength band, excitation light sources which shine excitation light on to the luminescent light source, a reflection space having the luminescent light source in an interior thereof and an emission space which emits luminescent light source light emitted from the reflection space from an emission port whose area is made smaller than the area of the luminescent light source and a projector which employs the light source unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 22, 2009
    Date of Patent: August 23, 2011
    Assignee: Casio Computer Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Tetsuro Narikawa
  • Patent number: 8000363
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a solid state laser device with a solid state gain medium between two resonator end mirrors (3, 5) and a GaN-based pump laser (1) arranged to optically pump the solid state gain medium. The solid state gain medium is a Pr3+-doped crystalline or polycrystalline host material (4) which has a cubic crystalline structure and highest phonon energies of ?600 cm?1 and provides a band gap of ?5.5 eV. The proposed solid state laser can be designed to emit at several visible wavelengths with the emitted power showing a reduced dependence on the temperature of the GaN-based pump laser (1).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 22, 2008
    Date of Patent: August 16, 2011
    Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V.
    Inventors: Ulrich Weichmann, Jaione Bengoechea Apezteguia, Patrice Jean-Pierre Camy, Jean-Louis Doualan, Richard Moncorge
  • Patent number: 7995631
    Abstract: A material having a surface and a dopant in the material distributed whereby the material has a spatially variant optical flux density profile. In accordance with the invention, tailored non-uniform gain profiles within a Yb:YAG laser component (rod, slab, disc, etc.) are achieved by a spatial material modification in the spatially masked pre-forms. High temperature-assisted reduction leads to the coordinate-dependent gain profiles, which are controlled by the topology of the deposited solid masks. The gain profiles are obtained by reducing the charge state of the laser-active trivalent Yb3+ ions into inactive divalent Yb2+ ions. This valence conversion process is driven by mass transport of ions and oxygen vacancies. These processes, in turn, affect the dopant distribution throughout the surface and bulk laser crystal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 14, 2006
    Date of Patent: August 9, 2011
    Assignee: Raytheon Company
    Inventors: David S. Sumida, Robert W. Byren, Michael Ushinsky
  • Patent number: 7953134
    Abstract: A semiconductor light-emitting device includes a substrate, a first cladding layer over the substrate, an active region on the first cladding layer, and a second cladding layer on the active region, wherein the active region includes a first type barrier layer that is doped and a second type barrier layer that is undoped, the first type barrier layer being closer to the first cladding layer than the second type barrier layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 31, 2008
    Date of Patent: May 31, 2011
    Assignee: Epistar Corporation
    Inventors: Ming-Ta Chin, Kuo-Feng Huang, Ping-Fei Shen, Ching-Jen Wang, Shih-Pang Chang
  • Patent number: 7949026
    Abstract: A group III nitride semiconductor laser is provided that has a good optical confinement property and includes an InGaN well layer having good crystal quality. An active layer 19 is provided between a first optical guiding layer 21 and a second optical guiding layer 23. The active layer 19 can include well layers 27a, 27b, and 27c and further includes at least one first barrier layer 29a provided between the well layers. The first and second optical guiding layers 21 and 23 respectively include first and second InGaN regions 21a and 23a smaller than the band gap E29 of the first barrier layer 29a, and hence the average refractive index nGUIDE of the first and second optical guiding layers 21 and 23 can be made larger than the refractive index n29 of the first barrier layer 29a. Thus, good optical confinement is achieved. The band gap E29 of the first barrier layer 29a is larger than the band gaps E21 and E23 of the first and second InGaN regions 21a and 23a.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 17, 2009
    Date of Patent: May 24, 2011
    Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.
    Inventors: Takashi Kyono, Katsushi Akita, Yusuke Yoshizumi
  • Publication number: 20110110386
    Abstract: Embodiments of the invention concern a passive discharge assembly comprising one or more substantially sharp electrode pins that are positioned proximate to a charged, insulating surface, such as the optical entrance and exit surface of a Q-switch crystal, e.g., lithium niobate (LiNbO3). The electrode pins are connected either to the ground or, alternatively, to a static source of neutralizing charge. The purpose of the electrodes is to ionize the air near the tips due to the high electric field generated by the surface charge. The air ions, in turn, neutralize the surface charge as they are attracted to the surface due to the electrical attraction. In the absence of a surface charge, no air ionization occurs. In one embodiment, the electrode pins are located near the Q-switch crystal surface, but outside the path of the laser beam propagating into and out of the Q-switch crystal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 11, 2009
    Publication date: May 12, 2011
    Applicant: FLIR Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: William E. Williams, Charles Carter, Robert Pollard
  • Patent number: 7912108
    Abstract: A solid-state laser emitting material for use in conjunction with a light source includes a polymer matrix functioning as host materials, containing laser dye of rhodamine 590 or rhodamine 610 as gain materials and nano-submicron particles as scatters therein. The lowest lasing threshold of the laser emitting material is approximately 5 mJ/cm2 for 585 nm emission and 2 mJ/cm2 for 630 nm emission.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 11, 2008
    Date of Patent: March 22, 2011
    Assignee: The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
    Inventors: Xiaoming Tao, Xiaohong Sun, Jianguo Deng, Kai-Cheong Kwan
  • Patent number: 7894496
    Abstract: A novel method and apparatus for suppressing ASE and/or parasitic oscillation modes in a laser is introduced. By roughening one or more peripheral edges of a solid-state crystal or ceramic laser gain media and by bonding such edges to a predetermined electromagnetic absorbing material arranged adjacent to the entire outer surface of the peripheral edges of the roughened laser gain media, ASE, parasitic oscillation modes and/or residual pump energy can be effectively suppressed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 5, 2008
    Date of Patent: February 22, 2011
    Assignee: Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC
    Inventors: Lloyd A. Hackel, Thomas F. Soules, Scott N. Fochs, Mark D. Rotter, Stephan A. Letts
  • Publication number: 20110032963
    Abstract: An Eu-containing inorganic compound has a polycrystal structure, in which Eu has been doped into a matrix garnet type compound and has formed a solid solution in the matrix garnet type compound. A doping concentration of Eu occupying at an eight-coordination site of the garnet structure falls within the range of more than 0.5 mol % to 50.0 mol %, inclusive. The doping concentration of Eu occupying at the eight-coordination site of the garnet structure should preferably fall within the range of 5.0 mol % to 30.0 mol %.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 23, 2007
    Publication date: February 10, 2011
    Applicant: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventors: Masayuki Suzuki, Masahiro Takata, Junichi Mori, Tomotake Ikada
  • Patent number: 7885304
    Abstract: A nitride-based semiconductor laser device includes a nitride-based semiconductor layer formed on a main surface of a substrate and having an emission layer, wherein the nitride-based semiconductor layer includes a first side surface formed by a (000-1) plane and a second side surface inclined with respect to the first side surface, and a ridge having an optical waveguide extending perpendicular to a [0001] direction in an in-plane direction of the main surface of the substrate is formed by a region held between the first side surface and the second side surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 2009
    Date of Patent: February 8, 2011
    Assignee: Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Yasuto Miyake, Ryoji Hiroyama, Masayuki Hata, Yasumitsu Kuno
  • Patent number: 7885302
    Abstract: An integrated tapered diode laser arrangement comprises an injector region (2) and a region (3) which is optically coupled to the injector region and expands in a cross section. At least one of said regions (2, 3) has a quantum well structure with a plurality of semiconductor materials, wherein the semiconductor materials are intermixed at least in one region (21, 31). The intermixed region (21, 31) has a larger electrical band gap than a non-intermixed region.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 2008
    Date of Patent: February 8, 2011
    Assignee: Osram Opto Semiconductors GmbH
    Inventors: Franz Eberhard, Thomas Schlereth, Wolfgang Schmid
  • Publication number: 20110026553
    Abstract: A device is provided. The device includes a first organic light emitting device, which further comprises a first electrode, a second electrode, and an organic emissive layer disposed between the first electrode and the second electrode. The device also includes a first laser device, which further comprises an optical cavity and an organic lasing material disposed within the optical cavity. A focus mechanism is disposed to focus light emitted by the first organic light emitting device onto the first laser device. Preferably, the focus mechanism provides light incident on the first laser device at least 10 times greater, and more preferably at least 100 times greater, in intensity than the light emitted by the first organic light emitting device.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 29, 2009
    Publication date: February 3, 2011
    Inventors: Stephen R. FORREST, Stephane Kena-Cohen, Noel Giebink
  • Patent number: 7860141
    Abstract: One objective of the present invention is to provide a laser device which is capable of scanning beams of a laser light of high output power at a high speed without using mechanical scanning mechanisms. A plurality of the upper electrodes 33 is linearly arranged in the photonic crystal laser provided with an active layer 21 and a two-dimensional photonic crystal layer 23 which are held between upper electrodes 33 and a lower electrode 27. A current is introduced from one upper electrode 33 or the plurality of the upper electrodes 33 disposed adjacently. Therefore, the active layer 21 generates light and the light is intensified by diffraction in the two-dimensional photonic crystal layer 23, so that a stronger laser light is emitted to the outside from around the upper electrodes 33 into which a current is introduced. When the current-injected upper electrodes are sequentially switched, a laser light scan is performed in the direction of the array of the upper electrodes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 28, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 28, 2010
    Assignees: Kyoto University, Rohm Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Susumu Noda, Masahiro Imada, Dai Ohnishi
  • Publication number: 20100316073
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a solid-state laser comprising a gain medium (6) of a solid-state host material which is co-doped with Ce3+-ions and ions of a further rare-earth material. The host material is selected such that a lower edge of the 5d band of the Ce3+-ions is energetically higher than an upper lasing state of the ions of the further rare-earth material. This laser can be optically pumped by GaN laser diodes (4) in the wavelength region between 400 and 450 nm and emits laser radiation in the visible wavelength range. With this laser, in particular, a GaN diode laser pumped solid-state laser emitting in the green wavelength region can be realized.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 15, 2007
    Publication date: December 16, 2010
    Applicant: KONINKLIJKE PHILIPS ELECTRONICS N.V.
    Inventors: Ulrich Weichmann, Peter J.W. Schmidt
  • Patent number: 7842956
    Abstract: On a nitride semiconductor layered portion formed on a substrate, there are formed an insulating film and a p-side electrode in this order. Furthermore, an end portion electrode protection layer is formed above the p-side electrode, around a position where cleavage will take place.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 11, 2006
    Date of Patent: November 30, 2010
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Susumu Ohmi, Kunihiro Takatani, Fumio Yamashita, Mototaka Taneya
  • Publication number: 20100288341
    Abstract: Photonic crystal cavities and related devices and methods are described. The described cavities can be used as lasers, photovoltaic sources, and single photon sources. The cavities can be both optically and electrically pumped. A fabrication process of the cavities is also described.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 23, 2010
    Publication date: November 18, 2010
    Inventors: Seheon KIM, Axel Scherer
  • Patent number: 7835408
    Abstract: An optical transmission system includes a laser, a transmitter and a receiver. The laser is capable of operating on an inhomogeneously broadened optical transition of the active region of the laser. A spectral bandwidth of an output lasing spectrum of the laser is greater than 5 nm and a spectral power density of the laser is greater than 2 mW/nm such that an optical power of the laser is greater than 10 mW. The laser provides a plurality of optical signals at different wavelengths. The transmitter is capable of providing modulation to each lasing wavelength independently and the receiver is capable of providing detection to each lasing wavelength independently.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 12, 2007
    Date of Patent: November 16, 2010
    Assignee: Innolume GmbH
    Inventors: Alexey Kovsh, Alexey Gubenko, Igor Krestnikov, Daniil Livshits, Sergey Mikhrin
  • Publication number: 20100272130
    Abstract: A laser assembly and method of operating the assembly are described in which a pump beam is directed through an end-pumped solid-state laser gain medium four or more times. The pump beam is directed at a slight angle through a first end of the medium, reflects off the inner surface of the second, opposite end (to form a “V”), and then reflected by an external or integrated mirror back through the first end and off the inner surface of the opposite end again (back through the “V”).
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 26, 2010
    Publication date: October 28, 2010
    Applicant: ONYX Optics, Inc.
    Inventors: Xiaodong Mu, Helmuth E. Meissner
  • Patent number: 7822091
    Abstract: The present invention pertains to a composite slab laser gain medium with an undoped core and at least one doped gain medium section disposed on at least one side of that core. The gain medium is constructed so as to mitigate the effects of thermal and mechanical stresses within it and also allow for impingement cooling of the doped gain medium section.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 14, 2008
    Date of Patent: October 26, 2010
    Assignee: Lockheed Martin Corporation
    Inventors: Paul E. Jackson, Nilo R. Salazar, Frederick G. Baum, Jr.
  • Patent number: 7822078
    Abstract: A method of producing green light signals, comprising coupling pump signals from at least one pump source into at least one erbium doped fiber (EDF) which cause ground state absorption (GSA), and excited state absorption (ESA) in erbium ions of the EDF, which produces green light signals, wherein the majority of the pump signals have a wavelength at which the probability of occurrence of ESA in the EDF is greater than the probability of occurrence of GSA in the EDF. The majority of the pump signals may have a wavelength in the range approximately 920 nm to approximately 980 nm, or in the region of 960 nm. An erbium doped fiber amplifier (EDFA) (1) for amplifying traffic-carrying signals may be pumped by green light signals produced by this method.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 19, 2007
    Date of Patent: October 26, 2010
    Assignee: Ericsson AB
    Inventors: Paolo Fella, Rodolfo Di Muro
  • Patent number: 7817683
    Abstract: Optical fiber source for providing polarized optical pulses, comprising a Q-switched fiber laser for providing substantially unpolarized seed pulses of optical energy, where the Q-switched fiber laser can comprise a laser cavity having a Q-switch and an optical fiber comprising a gain medium, where the optical fiber need not be a polarizing or polarization maintaining optical fiber; a passive polarizing element arranged to receive and substantially polarize the substantially unpolarized seed pulses; and a polarization maintaining fiber amplifier arranged for receiving the polarized seed pulses. The polarization maintaining fiber amplifier can comprise a selected polarizing or polarization maintaining fiber having a core comprising a gain medium for amplifying the substantially polarized seed pulses, where the core can be normally multimode at a an operating wavelength of the optical fiber source. The fiber amplifier can provide substantially polarized output pulses.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 22, 2009
    Date of Patent: October 19, 2010
    Assignee: NUFERN
    Inventor: Victor Khitrov
  • Patent number: 7813394
    Abstract: High-power, diode-pumped solid state (DPSS) pulsed lasers are preferred for applications such as micromachining, via drilling of integrated circuits, and ultraviolet (UV) conversion. Nd:YVO4 (vanadate) lasers are good candidates for high power applications because they feature a high energy absorption coefficient over a wide bandwidth of pumping wavelengths. However, vanadate has poor thermo-mechanical properties, in that the material is stiff and fractures easily when thermally stressed. By optimizing laser parameters and selecting pumping wavelengths and doping a concentration of the gain medium to control the absorption coefficient less than 2 cm?1 such as the pumping wavelength between about 910 nm and about 920 nm, a doped vanadate laser may be enhanced to produce as much as 100 W of output power without fracturing the crystal material, while delivering a 40% reduction in thermal lensing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 1, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 12, 2010
    Assignee: Electro Scientific Industries, Inc.
    Inventors: Xiaoyuan Peng, Wensheng Ren
  • Patent number: 7796660
    Abstract: The three-dimensional photonic crystal light emitting device includes a three-dimensional photonic crystal, and a defect forming a resonator in the three-dimensional photonic crystal. In the three-dimensional photonic crystal, an N-cladding layer formed of an N-type semiconductor, an active layer disposed inside the resonator, a P-cladding layer formed of a P-type semiconductor, a tunnel junction layer, and a first N-conductive layer formed of a first N-type conductor are arranged in this order. Electric conductivity of the first N-type conductor is higher than that of the P-type semiconductor. The light emitting device achieves high carrier injection efficiency and a high optical confinement effect.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 6, 2009
    Date of Patent: September 14, 2010
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Aihiko Numata, Kazuya Nobayashi
  • Publication number: 20100226396
    Abstract: In an optical arrangement for pumping solid-state lasers, there is the object of producing an intensity distribution across the beam cross section of the pump radiation with a rectangular intensity profile, which intensity distribution is homogeneous at least in a region corresponding to the Rayleigh range in the direction of the beam propagation without the beam quality being substantially impaired by the homogenization. The pump arrangement contains a rod-shaped homogenizer (1) with two opposed, polished end faces (2,3), planar side limit faces (4), which are arranged parallel to the optical axis and with a cross-sectional area at right angles to the optical axis, which forms a regular polygon, with the regular polygon being restricted to those number of sides which permit a plurality of polygons to be positioned against one another on a surface in such a way that they fill the space.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 20, 2007
    Publication date: September 9, 2010
    Inventor: Guenter Hollemann
  • Patent number: 7792168
    Abstract: A heat capacity laser having a solid lasing medium, at least one pumping source that is able to emit a pumping radiation, and an optical cavity that can be characterized by having: at least one device able to homogenize the pumping radiation, a doped lasing medium having a body with a first and a second end and being stretched in the length by more than 6 cm and whose height in cross section is less than its stretching in the length of the lasing medium. The doping concentration in the lasing medium may vary axially. Also either the cavity can have beam forming optics and the doping concentration of the lasing medium is radially uniform, or the cavity can have no beam forming optics and the lasing medium has a doping concentration that may vary radially.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 17, 2008
    Date of Patent: September 7, 2010
    Assignee: Institut Franco-Allemand de Recherches de Saint-Louis
    Inventor: Marc Eichhorn
  • Patent number: 7778301
    Abstract: Disclosed is a lasing complex comprising a room temperature solution containing cadmium sulfide (CdS) quantum dots. Optical gain has been observed in CdS nanocrystal quantum dots in strong confinement regime in toluene solution at room temperature using femtosecond transient absorption techniques. The optical gain lifetime is measured to be 20 picoseconds under pump fluence of 0.77 mJ/cm2. The relative lower gain threshold compared to that of CdSe quantum dots is attributed to the long lifetime of fluorescence and biexcitons and the relatively sharp photoluminescence linewidth. The CdS nanocrystals are excellent gain media for semiconductor quantum dot based blue lasers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 25, 2008
    Date of Patent: August 17, 2010
    Assignee: Georgia Tech Research Corporation
    Inventors: Mostafa A. El-Sayed, Wei Qian, Qusai Darugar
  • Patent number: 7777208
    Abstract: A chemiluminescent system and device is disclosed wherein a first polymeric sheet having a shaped cavity therein is sealed around its periphery to a second polymeric sheet and the cavity contains a cured PVC plastisol having admixed an oxalate solution and finely divided semiconductor laser crystals and a sealed receptacle containing a liquid component of a chemiluminescent activator. Placed over the plastisol or container is a light filter having a dye or dyes, pigment or pigments compounded into the filter, the dyes or pigments are chosen from those that absorb certain parts of the spectrum such that all light emissions up to 1050 nm are absorbed and anything beyond 1050 nm is transmitted. The devices generate a chemiluminescent light at wavelengths chosen to stimulate the semiconductor laser crystals. The semiconductor laser crystals absorb the chemiluminescent light and re-emit energy at wavelengths in the IR.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 12, 2008
    Date of Patent: August 17, 2010
    Assignee: Cyalume Technologies, Inc.
    Inventor: Earl Cranor
  • Publication number: 20100189145
    Abstract: High-power, diode-pumped solid state (DPSS) pulsed lasers are preferred for applications such as micromachining, via drilling of integrated circuits, and ultraviolet (UV) conversion. Nd:YVO4 (vanadate) lasers are good candidates for high power applications because they feature a high energy absorption coefficient over a wide bandwidth of pumping wavelengths. However, vanadate has poor thermo-mechanical properties, in that the material is stiff and fractures easily when thermally stressed. By optimizing laser parameters and selecting pumping wavelengths and doping a concentration of the gain medium to control the absorption coefficient less than 2 cm?1 such as the pumping wavelength between about 910 nm and about 920 nm, a doped vanadate laser may be enhanced to produce as much as 100 W of output power without fracturing the crystal material, while delivering a 40% reduction in thermal lensing.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 1, 2010
    Publication date: July 29, 2010
    Applicant: Electro Scientific Industries, Inc.
    Inventors: Xiaoyuan Peng, Wensheng Ren
  • Patent number: 7756175
    Abstract: A method for emitting laser radiation includes: emitting first laser radiation using a first laser, wherein said first laser is a laser diode; receiving the first laser radiation by a second laser comprising CdSe(1-x)Sx (cadmium selenium sulfide, cadmium selenium, or cadmium sulfide), wherein x is between 0 and 1, inclusively; and responsive to receiving the first laser radiation by the second laser, emitting second laser radiation by the second laser via the CdSe(1-x)Sx; wherein the second laser radiation has a wavelength between 487 nm and 690 nm; and wherein the wavelength of the second laser radiation is responsive to the value of x, which represents the relative concentration of selenium and/or sulfur.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 30, 2008
    Date of Patent: July 13, 2010
    Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Army
    Inventor: Robert C. Hoffman
  • Patent number: 7751460
    Abstract: A solid state laser system having at least one gas injector is disclosed. The gas injector may be configured to so as cause gas flow in a path of the laser beam in order to mitigate distortion of the laser beam due to optical path difference. Each gas injector may be configured so as to cause gas flow proximate at least one optical surface of a solid state gain element of the laser beam system. In this manner gain uniformity may be enhanced so as to facilitate use of the laser system in a variety of military and commercial applications.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 17, 2006
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2010
    Assignee: The Boeing Company
    Inventors: Jan Vetrovec, Charles C. Thompson, Tri H. Tran
  • Patent number: 7742673
    Abstract: An article includes a stack of display layers including a display layer having a high-shear modulus that is sandwiched between two display layers having a low-shear modulus. The display layers include a light-emitting device that generates heat and light during use. The heat generated by the display layers may form localized heat-sources in the stack. The display layer with the high-shear modulus is a thermal transport layer through which the localized heat-sources-induced guided elastic waves propagate along an acoustic waveguide plane and can transport the heat generated by the light-emitting device away from the light-emitting device. Alternately, a display layer having a high refractive index may be sandwiched between two display layers having a low refractive index. The display layers with low shear modulus or low refractive index may be replaced with thermal transport layers having low shear modulus or low refractive index respectively.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 28, 2007
    Date of Patent: June 22, 2010
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Yun Li, Mark Lewis Grabb, John Erik Hershey, Jian Zhang, Hua Xia
  • Patent number: 7720121
    Abstract: High-power, diode-pumped solid state (DPSS) pulsed lasers are preferred for applications such as micromachining, via drilling of integrated circuits, and ultraviolet (UV) conversion. Nd:YVO4 (vanadate) lasers are good candidates for high power applications because they feature a high energy absorption coefficient over a wide bandwidth of pumping wavelengths. However, vanadate has poor thermo-mechanical properties, in that the material is stiff and fractures easily when thermally stressed. By optimizing laser parameters and selecting pumping wavelengths and doping a concentration of the gain medium to control the absorption coefficient less than 2 cm?1 such as the pumping wavelength between about 910 nm and about 920 nm, a doped vanadate laser may be enhanced to produce as much as 100 W of output power without fracturing the crystal material, while delivering a 40% reduction in thermal lensing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 28, 2008
    Date of Patent: May 18, 2010
    Assignee: Electro Scientific Industries, Inc.
    Inventors: Xiaoyuan Peng, Wensheng Ren
  • Patent number: 7701991
    Abstract: A semiconductor laser diode using the aluminum gallium, arsenide, gallium indium arsenide phosphide, indium phosphide, (AlGaInAs/GaInAsP/InP) material system and related combinations is disclosed. Both the design of the active layer and the design of the optical cavity are optimized to minimize the temperature rise of the active region and to minimize the effects of elevated active layer temperature on the laser efficiency. The result is a high output power semiconductor laser for the wavelengths between 1.30 and 1.61 micrometers for the pumping of erbium doped waveguide devices or for direct use in military, medical, or commercial applications.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 22, 2005
    Date of Patent: April 20, 2010
    Assignee: SemiNex Corporation
    Inventors: David M. Bean, Yi Qian, Daniel E. Pulver
  • Patent number: 7700936
    Abstract: In one embodiment, a method of producing an optoelectronic nanostructure includes preparing a substrate; providing a quantum well layer on the substrate; etching a volume of the substrate to produce a photonic crystal. The quantum dots are produced at multiple intersections of the quantum well layer within the photonic crystal. Multiple quantum well layers may also be provided so as to form multiple vertically aligned quantum dots. In another embodiment, an optoelectronic nanostructure includes a photonic crystal having a plurality of voids and interconnecting veins; a plurality of quantum dots arranged between the plurality of voids, wherein an electrical connection is provided to one or more of the plurality of quantum dots through an associated interconnecting vein.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 30, 2006
    Date of Patent: April 20, 2010
    Assignee: University of Delaware
    Inventors: Janusz Murakowski, Garrett Schneider, Dennis W. Prather
  • Patent number: 7675953
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method for producing laser used directly as a frequency standard of optical frequency, comprising: a collimated atomic beam used as laser gain medium; the laser gain medium being put in vacuum; before the particles of the laser gain medium entering a laser resonant cavity, a laser device controlled independently providing pump laser irradiation to produce an inversion of atomic population number between energy levels of the particles of the laser gain medium for achieving cavity mode frequency line width ?cavity of longitudinal mode of the laser resonant cavity larger than frequency line width ?gain of gain of the used laser gain medium. And the frequency line width of the laser outputted used by the laser device contracted by the present invention can attain less than 1 Hz and the outputting laser frequency is very steady. So the laser produced by the present invention can be used directly as a quantum frequency standard of optical frequency.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 9, 2006
    Date of Patent: March 9, 2010
    Assignee: Peking University
    Inventor: Jingbiao Chen
  • Patent number: 7675952
    Abstract: A glaze encapsulated solid-state laser component. The novel laser component includes a core and a cladding of ceramic glaze disposed on a surface of the core. In an illustrative embodiment, the core is fabricated from a laser gain medium and the cladding material is a multi-oxide eutectic ceramic glaze having a refractivity slighter lower than the refractivity of the gain medium, such that the glaze layer forms a step-index refractivity interface cladding that can effectively suppress parasitic oscillations in the core gain medium. The glaze cladding can be applied by coating the core with the glaze and then firing the glaze coated core, or by fabricating pre-formed cladding strips from the ceramic glaze in a first firing cycle, mounting the pre-formed strips to the core, and then fusing the pre-formed strips to the core in a secondary firing cycle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 2004
    Date of Patent: March 9, 2010
    Assignee: Raytheon Company
    Inventors: Michael Ushinsky, Alexander A. Betin, Richard Gentilman, Patrick K. Hogan
  • Publication number: 20100054291
    Abstract: To provide a small and lightweight organic laser device which can be manufactured in a reproductive manner and from which laser light with a desired wavelength can be obtained. A first substrate provided with a light-emitting element having a light-emitting layer between a pair of electrodes and a second substrate provided with a laser medium including a laser dye face each other and one of the pair of electrodes, which is placed between the light-emitting layer and the laser medium, has a light transmitting property. With such a structure, a laser device with which a laser medium and a light source are integrated can be provided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 20, 2009
    Publication date: March 4, 2010
    Applicant: SEMICONDUCTOR ENERGY LABORATORY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Mikio YUKAWA, Tetsuo TSUTSUI
  • Patent number: 7649196
    Abstract: A light emitting device includes an optical cavity in resonance with an optical transition of a material disposed in the cavity. The device can form an exciton-polariton state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 3, 2005
    Date of Patent: January 19, 2010
    Assignee: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
    Inventors: Jonathan Tischler, Michael Scott Bradley, Vladimir Bulovic
  • Patent number: 7646795
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus for maintaining a quality of a Raman medium in a Raman conversion cell. In various examples, a flow velocity of the Raman medium is tailored based on a spatial nonuniformity of heat deposition resulting from the Raman conversion in the cell. In particular, in one example, the flow velocity of the Raman medium may be tailored to be higher where the heat deposition/temperature rise is larger and smaller elsewhere in the cell. This type of flow velocity profile reduces the overall required volumetric flow of the Raman medium in the cell without significantly affecting a quality of the Raman medium.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 21, 2002
    Date of Patent: January 12, 2010
    Assignee: Science Research Laboratory
    Inventors: Allen Flusberg, James Moran, Paul Lewis