High-brightness, high-power 9xx-nm diode laser bars: developments at JENOPTIK diode lab

Abstract

We report present advantages of high power 9xxnm diode laser bars for pumping of disc laser and especially for pumping fibre lasers and amplifiers. The strong demand for reduce system costs needs to have a good compromise in improved diode laser power, conversion efficiency, reliability and beam quality leading to simplified system designs. Basis of the new generation for the 9xxnm laser diode bars at JENOPTIK Diode Lab is a low loss wave guide AlGaAs - structure with low vertical far field angle of 27° (FWHM). Recently we demonstrate an output power in excess of 500W in CW operation from a diode laser bar with 50% filling factor and 3.0mm cavity length. This record was possible due to high power conversion efficiency of >68 %, optimised facet coating technology and an excellent active cooling. New results on conductive cooled high brightness laser bars of 20% filling factor with special emphasis to the needs of high efficiency fibre coupling will be presented. Lifetime tests under long pulse conditions have demonstrated a very high reliability for 120 W laser bars with 50 % filling factor and for 60 W laser bars with 20 % and 30 % filling factor.