Patents Examined by Marcia Golub
  • Patent number: 7653099
    Abstract: A semiconductor laser device according to the present invention includes: a semiconductor laser chip 1 for emitting laser light; a stem 3, 4 for supporting the semiconductor laser chip; a plurality of terminal electrodes, inserted in throughholes provided in the stem 3, 4, for supplying power to the semiconductor laser chip; and a cap 5 having an optical window 6 which transmits laser light and being affixed to the stem 3, 4 so as to cover the semiconductor laser chip 1. Between the stem 3, 4 and the terminal electrodes 7, this device includes insulation glass 8, which does not release silicon fluoride gas when heated to a temperature of no less than 700° C. and no more than 850° C.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 2, 2005
    Date of Patent: January 26, 2010
    Assignee: Panasonic Corporation
    Inventors: Yoshiaki Hasegawa, Toshiya Yokogawa, Hiroyoshi Yajima
  • Patent number: 7646796
    Abstract: A laser. The novel laser includes a gain medium, a pump source adapted to optically excite the gain medium in a first location, and a resonator adapted to extract energy from the gain medium in a second location distinct from the first location. In an illustrative embodiment, the gain medium is comprised of a plurality of solid-state gain particles suspended in a fluid. The gain medium is adapted to flow, and optical excitation of the gain medium occurs outside of the resonator. In a preferred embodiment, the flow velocity and the density of gain particles in the gain medium are adjusted for optimal absorption efficiency during optical excitation and then for optimal extraction efficiency in the resonator. In addition, the resonator may be shaped for optimal extraction efficiency, while pump modules that hold the gain medium during optical excitation are shaped for optimal absorption efficiency.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 21, 2007
    Date of Patent: January 12, 2010
    Assignee: Raytheon Company
    Inventors: Alexander A. Betin, Kalin Spariosu
  • Patent number: 7643531
    Abstract: An optical semiconductor element includes: a surface-emitting type semiconductor laser that emits laser light; a photodetecting element formed above the surface-emitting type semiconductor; a first electrode of a first polarity formed on the surface-emitting type semiconductor laser; a second electrode of a second polarity different from the first polarity formed on the photodetecting element; and an additional electrode that covers the first electrode and the second electrode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 14, 2006
    Date of Patent: January 5, 2010
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Yasutaka Imai, Tsuyoshi Kaneko, Atsushi Sato
  • Patent number: 7627006
    Abstract: A multi-wavelength laser source is provided including a pump laser unit, a gain section and an output. The pump laser unit generates an energy signal, which is applied to the gain section. The gain section includes a gain medium with having a superstructure grating forming a distributed Fabry-Perot-like structure. The superstructure grating causes a multi-wavelength laser signal to be generated when the energy signal is applied to the gain medium. The multi-wavelength laser signal is then released at the output.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 18, 2003
    Date of Patent: December 1, 2009
    Assignee: Universite Laval
    Inventors: Serge Doucet, Sophie Larochelle, Radan Slavik, Isabelle Castonguay
  • Patent number: 7583713
    Abstract: The invention relates to an unipolar quantum cascade laser comprising a plurality of adjacent semiconductor multilayer structures arranged in a periodic sequence through which an electron flow can be generated by providing at least two contact points, each of the multilayer structures having an optically active area comprising at least one quantum film structure in which there is at least one upper energy level and one lower energy level for the electrons, between which said levels light emitting electron transitions occur, as well as having a transition area comprising a plurality of semiconductor layers through which electrons from the lower energy level of said optically active area pass into the upper energy level of an optically active area of an adjacent semiconductor multilayer structure, which is directly adjacent to the transition area in the direction of electron transport, wherein the electron transitions and the electron transport occur solely in the conduction band of the semiconductor multilayer
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 6, 2002
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2009
    Assignee: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Förderung
    Inventors: Harald Schneider, Klaus Kohler, Herrn Quankui Yang
  • Patent number: 7580436
    Abstract: To provide surface-emitting type semiconductor lasers and methods of manufacturing the same in which the polarization direction of laser light can be readily controlled, a surface-emitting type semiconductor laser includes a vertical resonator above a substrate. The vertical resonator includes a first mirror, an active layer and a second mirror disposed in this order from the substrate. The vertical resonator has a plurality of unit resonators. An emission region of each of the unit resonators has a diameter that oscillates in a single-mode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 15, 2004
    Date of Patent: August 25, 2009
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Hitoshi Nakayama, Tsugio Ide, Tsuyoshi Kaneko
  • Patent number: 7577178
    Abstract: A narrow linewidth injection-seeded Q-switched fiber ring laser based on a low-SBS optical fiber. High peak powers are achieved through the use of a single-clad erbium doped fiber with an acoustic waveguide. 12.5 ?J per pulse (250ns pulse width) is achieved before a weakened form of stimulated Brillouin scattering appears. This laser has the potential to scale to very high power in a low-SBS dual clad fiber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 23, 2007
    Date of Patent: August 18, 2009
    Inventor: Peter Dragic
  • Patent number: 7561612
    Abstract: A laser source device provided with a light source, a wavelength conversion element, an external resonator, and an optical path conversion element. The wavelength conversion element is disposed inside the resonance structure, the second laser beam is taken out on the second optical path by the optical path conversion element and is led to a direction substantially the same as the proceeding direction of the first laser beam, and is used with the first laser beam as the output light beam. The selectively reflective film and the reflective surface for taking out the second laser beam are integrated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 28, 2006
    Date of Patent: July 14, 2009
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Keiko Kumagai, Minehiro Imamura
  • Patent number: 7530832
    Abstract: To provide a laser light source unit, a display device, a scanning display device and a projector, in each of which, when a laser is taken out of the chassis or the like, a laser thereof is assuredly rendered incapable of emitting. The laser light source unit includes a laser light source portion 10 having a light oscillation portion 12 emitting light, a fixing member that fixes the laser light source portion 10, an interrupting means that, simultaneously with a movement of removing the laser light source portion 10 off the fixing member, interrupts a current path for supplying a current to the light oscillation portion 12 in the laser light source portion 10.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 5, 2006
    Date of Patent: May 12, 2009
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Takashi Takeda, Hiroshi Shingu
  • Patent number: 7502391
    Abstract: Apparatus for providing optical radiation includes a pump source and at least one first amplifying waveguide. The first amplifying waveguide emits optical radiation in excess of 1400 nm when pumped by the pump source. In one embodiment, the pump source can include a plurality of laser diodes and a plurality of second amplifying waveguides. In this arrangement the first amplifying waveguide is pumped by the second amplifying waveguides, the second amplifying waveguides are pumped by the laser diodes, and the second amplifying waveguides are configured to improve the beam quality of radiation emitted by the laser diodes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 28, 2004
    Date of Patent: March 10, 2009
    Assignee: SPI Lasers UK Limited
    Inventors: Malcolm Paul Varnham, Mikhail Nicholaos Zervas, David Neil Payne, Lars Johan Albinsson Nilsson
  • Patent number: 7502403
    Abstract: In a horizontal cavity surface emitted laser, there is provided a device structure that is capable of obtaining a circular narrow-divergence emitted beam that is high in the optical coupling efficiency with a fiber. As a first means, there is provided a horizontal cavity surface emitting laser having a structure in which the plane mirror that is inclined by 45° and the bottom lens of the oval configuration are integrally structured. As a second means, there is provided a horizontal cavity surface emitting laser in which the mirror having the columnar front surface configuration inclined by 45° and the bottom lens of the columnar front surface configuration are integrally structured. Since the horizontal component and the vertical component of the laser beam can be shaped, independently, through the above means. As a result, it is possible to obtain the circular narrow-divergence emitted beam.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 1, 2007
    Date of Patent: March 10, 2009
    Assignee: Opnext Japan, Inc.
    Inventors: Kazunori Shinoda, Koichiro Adachi, Hideo Arimoto
  • Patent number: 7483453
    Abstract: A system in which the controller (24) of a multi section diode laser such as a SG-DBR (10) is configured so that the laser can be swept rapidly in a pre-determined frequency direction through a series of frequency points by asserting a pre-calibrated series of sets of control input values to the sections of the diode laser, wherein the frequency points are obtained from cavity modes in a plurality of different supermodes, and the sets of control input values are pre-determined to take account of thermal transients that are known to arise from jumps in the output modes that occur when sweeping through the pre-calibrated series of sets of control input values in the pre-determined frequency direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 19, 2003
    Date of Patent: January 27, 2009
    Assignee: Intune Technologies Limited
    Inventors: Ronan Diffily, David McDonald, Tommy Mullane
  • Patent number: 7471712
    Abstract: Because a focal distance of a condenser lens is changed due to a change in temperature, when irradiation of a laser beam is restarted after the irradiation has stopped, it takes a long time to restore a temperature of the cooled lens to a given temperature, and the operating efficiency is deteriorated. A first mirror 5 that can be located at a reflection position I at which an optical path is blocked and a laser beam a is reflected, and a second mirror 6 that reflects the laser beam a which is reflected by the first mirror 5 are disposed between the condenser lens 2 and the object to be irradiated 4.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 2, 2006
    Date of Patent: December 30, 2008
    Assignee: The Japan Steel Works, Ltd.
    Inventors: Junichi Shida, Suk-hwan Chung, Shuichi Uryu
  • Patent number: 7463659
    Abstract: The present invention provides an optical transmitting module, in which a laser diode and a termination resistor are provided without sizing up the package thereof and degrading the thermal characteristic due to heat generation by the termination resistor. The transmitting module of the present invention includes the semiconductor laser diode, and the resistor. The laser diode is mounted on the side surface of the block extruding from the base. The resistor is mounted on the flat side portion of the end of the lead. The lead is secured in the through hole provided in the base with seal glass being filled in the gap between the through hole and the lead. In the transmitting module thus configured, the laser diode is thermally isolated from the heat generated by the resistor due to the seal glass.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 9, 2004
    Date of Patent: December 9, 2008
    Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.
    Inventors: Hisao Go, Eiji Tsumura, Akihiro Moto, Kiyoshi Kato, Toshiaki Kihara
  • Patent number: 7420994
    Abstract: A pulsed cascaded Raman laser (10) includes a pulsed light source (102) for generating a pulsed light (104) having an optical spectrum centered at a source wavelength. A non-linear Raman conversion fiber (106) is coupled to the pulsed light source (102). The pulsed light (104) traverses the nonlinear Raman conversion fiber (106) and the source power at the source wavelength is converted to a power output of an output signal (108) having an output wavelength longer than the source wavelength by a cascaded Stimulated Raman Scattering process, such that most of the source power is converted to the power of the last Stokes order in a single pass through the non-linear Raman conversion fiber (106).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 2005
    Date of Patent: September 2, 2008
    Assignee: Corning Incorporated
    Inventors: Andrey Korolev, Dmitri V. Kuksenkov, Vladimir Nazarov
  • Patent number: 7403551
    Abstract: The aim of the invention is to adjust the operating point of a laser that can be modulated by a data signal. The operating point of the laser is adjusted by regulating a direct current flowing through the laser; whereby said direct current correlates with the optical characteristics of the laser. In order to carry out said adjustment, the direct current is controlled above an alterable threshold current. A differential current defined from the difference between the direct current and the threshold current or a variable correlating with the differential current is adjusted to a constant value or one that is solely dependent on temperature for the adjustment of said operating point.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 5, 2001
    Date of Patent: July 22, 2008
    Assignee: Finisar Corporation
    Inventors: Franz Auracher, Robert Scholz
  • Patent number: 7397834
    Abstract: The nitride semiconductor laser device has a counter electrode structure where contact resistance is reduced and manufacturing methods thereof are provided. The nitride semiconductor laser device comprises a nitride semiconductor substrate having a first main surface and a second main surface. A nitride semiconductor layer is stacked on the first main surface of the nitride semiconductor substrate. A ridge-shaped stripe is formed in the nitride semiconductor layer, and a resonance surface forms an optical waveguide in the direction perpendicular to the length of the ridge-shaped stripe. A first region having a crystal growth facet in the (0001) plane and a second region on the first main surface or the second main surface are provided. Further, a recess is formed in the second region of the first main surface and/or the second main surface. A ridge-shape stripe is formed over the first main surface of the nitride semiconductor substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 12, 2004
    Date of Patent: July 8, 2008
    Assignee: Nichia Corporation
    Inventors: Tokuya Kozaki, Keiji Sakamoto, Hiroaki Matsumura
  • Patent number: 7391797
    Abstract: The invention relates to an integrated circuit for controlling a laser diode, comprising a signal input for receiving a data signal; a signal output for connection to the laser diode; a modulator for modulation of the data signal; a current infeed connected to the signal output for the supply of a bias current; a coupling capacitor between the output of the modulator and the signal output in order to form a high pass with the differential resistor of the laser diode. Preferably, the circuit also comprises an active compensation circuit with a low pass connected to the output of the modulator; and a circuit which is connected to the low pass for producing a signal which is inversely proportional to the low pass output voltage and which is added to the output signal or subtracted from the output signal. The low pass can be controlled by a circuit guiding the data signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 21, 2001
    Date of Patent: June 24, 2008
    Assignee: Finisar Corporation
    Inventors: Karl Schrödinger, Toralf Oheim
  • Patent number: 7388895
    Abstract: Corner pumping method and gain module for high power slab laser are disclosed. In one embodiment, said method comprises directing a pump light from one or more pump light sources each consisting of a high power diode array and its coupling system into a laser slab through prior cut slab corners of said laser slab without restriction to the incident angle or the polarization state of the pump light, wherein said laser slab includes an undoped circumambient portion and one or more doped central portions; propagating said pump light within the laser slab by total internal reflection (TIR), wherein said pump light firstly pass said undoped circumambient portion, secondly pass said doped central portion, thirdly pass said undoped circumambient portion again, and fourthly take inner reflection at the surface of said undoped circumambient portion, and by repeating these steps, achieve multi-pass absorption; and substantially absorbing the pump light during propagating.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 21, 2003
    Date of Patent: June 17, 2008
    Assignee: Tsinghua University
    Inventors: Mali Gong, Chen Li, Qiang Liu, Ping Yan, Gang Chen, HaiTao Zhang, Ruizhen Cui
  • Patent number: 7382816
    Abstract: A charging voltage Vosc applied to a main capacitor C0 disposed in an oscillating high-voltage pulse generator 12 of an oscillating laser 100 is subject to constant control such that a pulse energy Posc of the oscillating laser 100 becomes a lower limit energy Es0 or more of an amplification saturation region. And, a charging voltage Vamp applied to a main capacitor C0 disposed in an amplifying high-voltage pulse generator 32 of an amplifying laser 300 is controlled, and pulse energy Pamp of the amplifying laser 300 is determined as target energy Patgt. Thus, the pulse energy of a two-stage laser is controlled to stabilize the pulse energy.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 9, 2004
    Date of Patent: June 3, 2008
    Assignee: Gigaphoton Inc.
    Inventors: Tatsuya Ariga, Osamu Wakabayashi, Kouji Kakizaki