Abstract: A mode locked semiconductor disk laser with an output beam having an ultra-short pulse length which provides the incident beam to a non linear microscope. The wavelength of the beam is at or near the action cross section maximum absorption wavelength for creating two photon excited fluorescence of a fluorescent biological marker in a sample. Semiconductor disk lasers combine excellent beam quality and output power, stability while maintaining simplicity and easiness of operation. In addition, these types of lasers are ideally suited for mass production as they are built in wafer-scale technology enabling a high level of integration. Importantly this non expensive, turn-key, compact laser system could be used as a platform to develop portable non-linear bio-imaging devices for clinical studies, facilitating its wide-spread adoption in “real-life” applications.

Abstract: The present invention uses nonlinear crystal waveguides to provide a continuous wave and picoseconds pulse laser systems that gives an order-of-magnitude increase in IR-to-visible conversion efficiency and also provide an order-of-magnitude increase of wavelength range for SHG conversion. The idea of enabling such broad tunability is based on the utilization of a significant difference in the effective refractive indices of the high order and low order modes in the waveguide. This feature enables the difference between the effective refractive indices of the fundamental and second-harmonic waves to be shifted to match the period of poling in a very broad wavelength range.

Abstract: A mode locked semiconductor disk laser with an output beam having an ultra-short pulse length which provides the incident beam to a non linear microscope. The wavelength of the beam is at or near the action cross section maximum absorption wavelength for creating two photon excited fluorescence of a fluorescent biological marker in a sample. Semiconductor disk lasers combine excellent beam quality and output power, stability while maintaining simplicity and easiness of operation. In addition, these types of lasers are ideally suited for mass production as they are built in wafer-scale technology enabling a high level of integration. Importantly this non expensive, turn-key, compact laser system could be used as a platform to develop portable non-linear bio-imaging devices for clinical studies, facilitating its wide-spread adoption in “real-life” applications.

Abstract: An optical system (31) with an input optical source (33) for projecting an input beam along an optical axis and an optical element (37, 43) which creates a cone refracted beam (41) from the input beam (35) then reconstructs the input beam (49). The optical element may comprise a first cone refractive element (37) which creates a cone refracted beam and reconstructs the beam using a reconstructing optical element (43) to apply a phase shift to the cone refracted beam. The optical system may be used to form a laser or a gain medium for a laser.

Abstract: An optical system (31) with an input optical source (33) for projecting an input beam along an optical axis and an optical element (37, 43) which creates a cone refracted beam (41) from the input beam (35) then reconstructs the input beam (49). The optical element may comprise a first cone refractive element (37) which creates a cone refracted beam and reconstructs the beam using a reconstructing optical element (43) to apply a phase shift to the cone refracted beam. The optical system may be used to form a laser or a gain medium for a laser.

Abstract: A photoconductive device (2) comprises a plurality of photoconductive layers (6, 8, 10, 12), each photoconductive layer comprising photoconductive material (4) and a respective plurality of electrodes (16, 18), wherein the photoconductive layers (6, 8, 10, 12) are electrically connected together.