Depolarization of laser optical components from thermal stress remains a major limitation in high-average-power laser amplifiers. Non-uniform thermal gradients induce mechanical stresses and birefringence. If left uncompensated, laser performance degrades—in power/energy, repetition rate, beam quality, coherence and may even lead to parasitic mechanisms and internal laser damage. The current solutions that mitigate or compensate these effects are often either complex, costly optically active rotator methods or uses magneto-optical effects to restore the polarization, e.g., extremely costly Faraday rotators.
LLNL researchers have developed novel and cost-effective series of architectures and techniques relating for passive mitigation of thermal depolarization in high average power and peak power laser systems.
Current stage of technology development:
TRL ☐ 0-2 ☒ 3-5 ☐ 5-9
- Cost effective thermal depolarization
- Increased laser performance
- Longer system life
Damage tolerant laser architectures capable of accessing new tradespace in high average power or high peak power laser systems applied to compact laser particle accelerators, fusion energy class laser drivers. Other applications include high-precision materials processing, extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography, x-ray and gamma ray source generators, laser-based remote-sensing, high-resolution imaging in astrophysics, high-energy density physics.
