A line narrowing device includes first and second prisms disposed at positions different in a wavelength dispersion direction of any of the first and second prisms, a third prism disposed on the optical path of an optical beam and through which the beam width of the optical beam is enlarged and first and second parts of the optical beam are incident on the first and second prisms, respectively, a grating disposed across the optical path of the first part having passed through the first prism and the optical path of the second part having passed through the second prism, a first actuator configured to adjust the incident angle of the first part on the grating, a second actuator configured to adjust the incident angle of the second part on the grating, and a third actuator configured to adjust an energy ratio of the first and second parts.

A control method for a line narrowed gas laser apparatus is a control method for a line narrowed gas laser apparatus configured to emit a pulse laser beam including a first wavelength component and a second wavelength component. The apparatus includes a laser chamber including a pair of electrodes, an optical resonator including an adjustment mechanism configured to adjust a parameter of an energy ratio of the first and second wavelength components, and a processor in which relation data indicating a relation of the parameter of the energy ratio with a control parameter of the adjustment mechanism is stored. The control method includes receiving a command value of the parameter of the energy ratio from an external device, and acquiring, based on the relation data, a value of the control parameter corresponding to the command value and controlling the adjustment mechanism based on the value of the control parameter.

A line narrowing device includes a first prism; first and second gratings arranged on the optical path of the light beam having passed through the first prism at positions different in a direction of grooves of either the first grating or the second grating; a beam adjustment optical system arranged on the optical path of the light beam between the first prism and at least one grating of the first and second gratings, and causing a first portion of the light beam to be incident on the first grating and causing a second portion of the light beam to be incident on the second grating; a first actuator adjusting an incident angle of the first portion on the first grating; a second actuator adjusting an incident angle of the second portion on the second grating; and a third actuator adjusting an energy ratio of the first and second portions.

A narrowed-line gas laser apparatus includes a laser chamber that accommodates a pair of electrodes disposed so as to face each other, an output coupling mirror, and a line narrowing apparatus that forms an optical resonator along with the output coupling mirror, the line narrowing apparatus including an optical system having a first region and a second region on which a first portion and a second portion of a light beam that exits out of the laser chamber are incident, the first and second portions passing through different positions in a direction in which the pair of electrodes face each other, the optical system being configured to suppress an increase in the distance between the optical path axis of the first portion and the optical path axis of the second portion.

A diffractive optical element, such as a plasma grating, can be made by directing two laser beams so that they overlap in a nonlinear material to form an interference pattern in the nonlinear material. The interference pattern can modify the index of refraction in the nonlinear material to produce the diffractive optical element. A chirped pulse amplification system can stretch, amplify, and then compress a laser pulse, and the plasma grating can be used to compress the laser pulse since the plasma optic can withstand the high light intensity of the compressed pulse.

A passively, Q-switched laser operating at an eye safe wavelength of between 1.2 and 1.4 microns is described. The laser may operate at a lasing wavelength of 1.34 microns and use a gain element of Nd:YVO.sub.4 and a saturable absorber element of V:YAG. The systems and methods to produce short pulses having a pulse duration less than 1 ns and high energy pulses having pulse energies greater than 2 μJ are described.

An internal laser component of an optical device comprises: a waveguide that defines a guided mode of a first optical wave characterized by a first propagation constant associated with a first effective refractive index. An optical antenna grating comprises: a waveguide that defines a guided mode of a second optical wave characterized by a second propagation constant associated with a second effective refractive index, and a grating structure configured to emit a portion of the second optical wave in a selected direction. The internal laser component and the optical antenna grating are configured to provide a relationship between the first effective refractive index and the second effective refractive index such that the selected direction is substantially insensitive to a change in a temperature of a thermal environment in which the internal laser component and the optical antenna grating are thermally coupled.

A control system for frequency control of a laser module, comprising at least one laser module for generating laser radiation, at least one control device coupled or configured to couple to the laser module, and at least one optical resonator coupled or configured to couple to the control device, wherein the control device comprises a semiconductor substrate, a first Pound-Drever-Hall system arranged on the semiconductor substrate and at least one second Pound-Drever-Hall system arranged on the semiconductor substrate, wherein the laser module is coupled to the first Pound-Drever-Hall system of the control device and is configured to couple to the at least second Pound-Drever-Hall system of the control device, wherein the first Pound-Drever-Hall system is coupled to the optical resonator and wherein the second Pound-Drever-Hall system is configured to couple to the optical resonator, and wherein the number of Pound-Drever-Hall systems is greater than the number of laser modules or optical resonators.

A control system for frequency control of a laser module, comprising at least one laser module for generating laser radiation, at least one control device coupled or configured to couple to the laser module, and at least one optical resonator coupled or configured to couple to the control device, wherein the control device comprises a semiconductor substrate, a first Pound-Drever-Hall system arranged on the semiconductor substrate and at least one second Pound-Drever-Hall system arranged on the semiconductor substrate, wherein the laser module is coupled to the first Pound-Drever-Hall system of the control device and is configured to couple to the at least second Pound-Drever-Hall system of the control device, wherein the first Pound-Drever-Hall system is coupled to the optical resonator and wherein the second Pound-Drever-Hall system is configured to couple to the optical resonator, and wherein the number of Pound-Drever-Hall systems is greater than the number of laser modules or optical resonators.

A measurement device includes: an optical gain unit for generating and amplifying light; a transmission optical band variation unit for selecting a specific optical frequency band from the light generated by the optical gain unit, and varying the selected specific optical frequency band to transmit light; a resonant optical frequency variation unit for performing a frequency variation so that multiple resonant optical frequency orders within the specific optical frequency band vary over a variation range narrower than intervals between the respective orders; resonance induction units forming an optical resonance unit which includes the optical gain unit, the transmission optical band variation unit, and the resonant optical frequency variation unit and causes selective oscillation of light having a specific resonant optical frequency within a specific transmission optical band; and a control signal unit for varying each of the transmission optical band variation unit and the resonant optical frequency variation unit.