JPS6211285A - Laser apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain a laser apparatus which can generate high output with high repetition by a method wherein, when the laser apparatus is constituted by pulse laser generators, a plurality of pulse laser generators are provided and those generators are operated by respective pulses whose frequencies are demultiplied corresponding to the number of generators and generated laser beams are synthesized. CONSTITUTION:A laser apparatus is constituted by a plurality of, for instance three, pulse laser generators 1a, 1b and 1c which have random reflection mirrors 2a, 2b and 2c and output mirrors 3a, 3b and 3c on both end sides respectively and those generators 1a, 1b and 1c are operated by three pulse sources 4a, 4b and 4c. A DC source 5 and a pulse generator 6 are connected to those pulse sources and pulses from the pulse generator 6 are demultiplied by a frequency demultiplier 7 corresponding to the number of the sources, in this case by 1/3. Then three generators are operated correspondingly to the demultiplied pulses and generated laser beams are supplied to a synthesizer 9 through mirrors 8a and 8c on both sides to be emitted as a synthesized laser beam 10. With this constitution, generating operation can be stabilized and high output can be obtained.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Technical Field of the Invention] The present invention relates to a laser beam that outputs a laser beam,
In particular, it relates to a laser device that achieves high repetition rate and high output.

[Technical background of the invention and its problems]

In general, the laser oscillation tube for laser equipment is highly efficient,
High-repetition metal vapor lasers are known, but when using laser light for isotope separation, they have a high repetition frequency exceeding 10KH7 and the average laser output is several hundred W.
A high-power laser oscillation tube exceeding 100% is required.

By the way, in the metal vapor laser oscillation tube that performs pulse oscillation, continuous oscillation cannot be obtained because the life of the lower level of the laser is longer than the life of the lower level. In addition, it takes a relatively long time to operate because the metal atoms remaining at the lower level are transferred to stable units using diffusion caused by collisions with neutral gas and walls.

Therefore, in a conventional laser device equipped with a single metal vapor laser oscillation tube, the repetition frequency is increased by increasing the frequency of the trigger pulse input to the metal vapor laser oscillation tube, and the repetition frequency is increased in proportion to this repetition frequency. If the average laser output is increased, on the contrary, the unit density under the laser cannot be sufficiently lowered, and therefore the average laser output cannot be increased.

Repeat cycle I in such a metal vapor laser oscillation tube
l! The relative relationships between f, energy E per unit trigger pulse, and time average output P are shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, respectively.

That is, in the metal vapor laser oscillation tube, as shown in FIG. 4, the laser energy per unit trigger pulse decreases as the repetition frequency f increases. This is because when the repetition frequency f becomes high, the laser energy emitted per unit trigger pulse decreases because the unit density under the laser does not become sufficiently low.

Furthermore, as shown in Fig. 5, when the time-average output P per metal vapor laser tube increases, the laser energy per unit trigger pulse decreases as the repetition frequency f increases, but the required repetition frequency dissipation It increases, and when it exceeds the repetition frequency at its peak, it gradually decreases.

Therefore, in a conventional laser device incorporating a single metal vapor laser oscillation tube having such characteristics, the average It was difficult to increase the output P.

In addition, in order to increase the laser output per single pulse, it is possible to increase the discharge volume of the metal vapor laser oscillator tube, but this increases the discharge volume and causes instability in the discharge action. There was a risk that new problems would arise.

[Purpose of the invention]

The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a laser device with high repetition rate and high output.

[Summary of the invention]

The present invention has been made in view of the fact that the problem with the conventional method is that a single pulsed laser oscillation tube is provided, and the pulsed laser oscillation tube is oscillated in response to a trigger pulse from a pulse generator. A plurality of pulse laser oscillator tubes that output laser light are installed, and each pulse from the trigger pulse frequency divider that time-divides the pulses is divided by the above-mentioned bird at a frequency division ratio corresponding to the number of pulse laser oscillator tubes installed. It is characterized in that the laser beams respectively inputted and outputted from these pulsed laser oscillation tubes are combined by a combiner.

(Embodiments of the Invention) Examples of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3.

FIG. 1 shows the overall configuration of an embodiment of a laser device according to the present invention, in which a plurality of pulse laser oscillation tubes 1, for example three, are provided 1a, 1b, and 1c.

Each of the pulse laser oscillator tubes 1a, 1b, and Ic is made of, for example, a Golden Horse vapor laser oscillator tube, and receives a trigger pulse to generate a pulse oscillation and output a laser beam. These pulsed laser oscillation tubes la, 1b.

1C has total reflection mirrors 2a, 2b, 2C and output mirrors 3a, 3b, 3G facing each other, and is electrically connected to and driven by each pulse power source 4a, 4b, 4C, respectively. .

Each pulse voltage 114a, 4b, 4c is connected to a high voltage DC power supply 5, and each trigger pulse TRa, T is divided by a trigger pulse frequency divider 7 connected to a pulse generator 6.
Rb and TRc are respectively input, and when the pulsed laser oscillation tube 1 is a metal vapor laser oscillation tube, it is configured as shown in the circuit diagram of FIG. 2, for example.

For convenience of explanation, only one example of the pulse power source 4a is shown in FIG. 2, but the other power sources 4b and 4c have substantially the same configuration, and redundant explanation will be omitted.

A DC high voltage power supply 5 is connected to one end INa of the input end of the pulse generator 14a, a trigger pulse frequency divider 7 is connected to the other end INb, and a pulse laser oscillation tube 1 is connected to the output end OUT.
A is connected. Input terminal INa of this pulse power supply 4a
is connected to the plate of thyratron THY, charging capacitor CG, etc. via inductance L, etc., and the grid of thyratron THY is connected to the other input terminal INb,
When the thyratron THY is turned on, the charge stored in the charging capacitor CC is discharged through the pulse laser oscillation tube 1a.

The trigger pulse frequency divider 7 receives the trigger pulse TR input from the pulse generator 6 as shown in FIGS. 3(A) and 3(B).
, pulse laser oscillation tubes 1a and lb.

The trigger pulse trains TRa, TR of these three systems are time-divided at a frequency division ratio of 1/3 corresponding to the number of installed 1C, for example, 3.
b, TRC is input to each pulse power source 4a, 4b, 4c.

On the other hand, each output mirror 3 of the pulse laser oscillation tubes 1a and 1c
The laser beams output from a and 3c are reflected by mirrors 8a and 8c, and the laser beam from the output mirror 3b of the pulsed laser oscillation tube 1b is directly input to the combiner 9, where the respective laser beams are combined. It outputs a laser beam 10.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.

A trigger pulse TR of a pulse train as shown in FIG. 3(B) is input from the pulse generator 6 to the trigger pulse splitter 7. Here, the trigger pulse TR is time-divided at a frequency division rate of 1/3, and three systems of trigger pulses TRa, TRb, and TRc are provided by each pulse power source 4a.

It is input to 4b and 4C.

Each pulse power source 4a, 4b, 4C has these trigger pulses T
Ra, TRb, and TRc are shown in Figure 2 for each thyratron T.
Apply it to the HY grid to make it conductive. As a result, charging capacitor CC is connected via inductance L, etc.
The DC high voltage charged in
discharge through. Therefore, each pulse laser oscillation tube 1a, lb, 1c has a trigger pulse TRa, TRb.

In synchronization with the frequency of TRc, pulses are sequentially oscillated at 1/3 period of the trigger pulse TR of the pulse generator 6, and laser beams are sequentially output from each output mirror 3a, 3b, and 3c at 1/3 period. The laser beams output from the output mirrors 3a and 3c are reflected by the mirrors 8a and F1a, and the laser beams output from the output mirror 3b are directly incident on the combiner 9, where the respective laser beams are combined. and outputs a laser beam 10.

In other words, the output of the laser beam 10 is obtained by combining the outputs of the pulse laser oscillation tubes 1a, 1b, and 1c, so the output is three times that of the conventional example in which a single pulse laser oscillation tube is installed. You can improve your performance.

In addition, although the above-mentioned example explained the case where three pulse laser oscillation tubes 1 were provided, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, two or four or more may be used, and in this case, The frequency division ratio of the trigger pulse frequency divider 7 is made to correspond to the number of pulse laser oscillation tubes 1 installed.

In addition, although an example of a metal vapor laser oscillation tube is given as the pulsed laser oscillation tube 1, the present invention is not limited to this, and there may also be a pulsed laser oscillation tube that uses electric discharge, such as a carbon dioxide laser oscillation tube. , an excimer laser oscillation tube.

[Effects of the Invention] As explained above, the present invention provides a laser device having a pulsed laser oscillation tube that oscillates and outputs laser light in response to a trigger pulse from a pulse generator, in which a plurality of the above-mentioned pulsed laser oscillation tubes are used. At the same time, pulses from a trigger pulse frequency divider that time-divides the trigger pulses are input to these pulse laser oscillation tubes at a frequency division ratio corresponding to the number of pulse laser oscillation tubes installed, and each pulse is output from these pulse laser oscillation tubes. The laser beams are combined by a combiner.

Therefore, according to the present invention, since a plurality of pulsed laser oscillation tubes are installed and the respective laser beams from these are combined,
This has the effect of achieving higher repetition rates and higher output than the conventional example in which a single pulsed laser oscillation tube is used.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of an embodiment of a laser device according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram of the pulse power supply shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. FIG. 3(B) is a trigger pulse time chart for explaining the frequency dividing action of the trigger pulse frequency divider shown in FIG. 1; FIGS. 4 and 5 are graphs showing the characteristics of metal vapor laser oscillator tubes, respectively. 1a, Ib, 1c...Pulse laser oscillation tube, 2a, 2
b, 2cm... Total reflection mirror, 3a, 3b, 3C...
Output mirror, 4a, 4b, 4c... Output mirror, 5.
...High voltage DC power supply, 6...Pulse generator, 7...Trigger pulse divider, TR...Trigger pulse. Representative Patent Attorney Rules Ken Yudo Chika Hiroshi Mimata Collection 1 Figure 2 (A) (B) Figure 3 Repetition frequency f Figure 4 hl Repetition frequency f Figure 5

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. In a laser device having a pulsed laser oscillation tube that oscillates and outputs laser light in response to a trigger pulse from a pulse generator, a plurality of the above-mentioned pulsed laser oscillation tubes are provided, and these pulsed laser oscillation tubes are provided. Each pulse from a trigger pulse frequency divider that time-divides the trigger pulses at a frequency division ratio corresponding to the number of tubes installed is inputted to each tube, and the laser beams output from each of these pulsed laser oscillation tubes are combined by a combiner. A laser device characterized by synthesis. 2. The laser device according to claim 1, wherein the pulsed laser oscillation tube is one of a metal vapor laser, a carbon dioxide laser, and an excimer laser.