The passively q-switched diode end-pumped solid-state laser is used the gain medium made of Er:Yb doped crystal and the Q-switch made of Co.sup.2+:MgAl.sub.2O.sub.4 crystal. The optical elements are optimally designed for the resonator to achieve pulse energy in a range 0.5 mJ<E<2mJ with the pulse width in a range of 4 ns-15 ns. The resonator is appropriate to use in laser rangefinders, target designator, and other products in military and civilian applications.

In one embodiment, a lidar system includes a light source configured to emit light at one or more wavelengths between 1200 nm and 1400 nm. The lidar system also includes a scanner configured to scan the emitted light across a field of regard of the lidar system and a receiver configured to detect a portion of the emitted light scattered by a target located a distance from the lidar system. The lidar system further includes a processor configured to determine the distance from the lidar system to the target based at least in part on a round-trip time for the portion of the emitted light to travel from the lidar system to the target and back to the lidar system.

In one embodiment, a lidar system includes a light source configured to emit light at one or more wavelengths between 1200 nm and 1400 nm. The lidar system also includes a scanner configured to scan the emitted light across a field of regard of the lidar system and a receiver configured to detect a portion of the emitted light scattered by a target located a distance from the lidar system. The lidar system further includes a processor configured to determine the distance from the lidar system to the target based at least in part on a round-trip time for the portion of the emitted light to travel from the lidar system to the target and back to the lidar system.

The invention discloses a multi-wavelength and single-frequency Q-switching optical fiber laser device. The laser device comprises a saturable absorber, a high gain optical fiber, a polarization-maintaining multi-wavelength narrow-band fiber Bragg grating, a resonant cavity temperature control module, a polarization-maintaining wavelength division multiplexer, a pump source and a polarization-maintaining light isolator. By taking a highly doped phosphate optical fiber as a laser gain medium, two ends of the optical fiber device are connected with the saturable absorber and the polarization-maintaining multi-wavelength narrow-band fiber Bragg grating respectively to form a short linear laser cavity. A short cavity length of the short linear laser cavity can realize single longitudinal mode operation of laser in the resonant cavity, and meanwhile, a stable multi-wavelength and single-frequency pulse laser output is realized in the resonant cavity by combining multi-wavelength resonance caused by the polarization-maintaining multi-wavelength narrow-band fiber Bragg grating with passive Q-switching performance of the saturable absorber in the cavity. The multi-wavelength single-frequency Q-switching optical fiber laser device of the invention realizes output of a plurality of wavelength pulse laser with adjusted repeated frequency simultaneously, and the laser in each wavelength is maintained in single-frequency operation, such that the multi-wavelength single-frequency Q-switching optical fiber laser device can be widely applied to aspects of laser radar, laser sensing, gas detection and the like.

There is provided a passive Q-switch pulse laser device including a laser medium, and a saturable absorber. The laser medium is disposed between a pair of reflection means included in an optical resonator. The laser medium is excited by specific excitation light to emit emission light. The saturable absorber is disposed on an optical axis of the optical resonator and on a downstream side of the laser medium between the pair of reflection means. The saturable absorber has a transmittance increased by absorption of the emission light. At least one of the pair of reflection means is a polarizing element. The polarizing element has different reflectances with respect to the respective pieces of emission light in polarization directions orthogonal to each other.

A Cr:YAG sintered body including Al, Y, Cr, Ca, Mg, Si, and O, and component contents in the sintered body satisfying conditional expressions of 1) to 3) below, provided in the Conditional expression, each chemical symbol represents a component content (atppm).
|(Y+Ca)/(Al+Cr+Si+Mg)−0.6|<0.001;  1)
0≤(Ca+Mg)−(Cr+Si)≤50 atppm; and  2)
50≤Si≤500 atppm  3) The embodiment of the present invention is to provide a Cr:YAG sintered body which exhibits high transparency and has a high Cr.sup.4+ conversion ratio, and its production method.

The invention relates to a supercontinuum light source comprising a microstructured optical fiber and a pump light source. The microstructured optical fiber comprises a core and a cladding region surrounding the core, as well as a first fiber length section, a second fiber length section and an intermediate fiber length section between said first and second fiber length sections. The first fiber length section comprises a core with a first characteristic core diameter. The second fiber length section comprises a core with a second characteristic core diameter, smaller than said first characteristic core diameter, where said second characteristic core diameter is substantially constant along said second fiber length section. The intermediate length section of the optical fiber comprises a core which is tapered from said first characteristic core diameter to said second characteristic core diameter over a tapered length.

The invention relates to a supercontinuum light source comprising a microstructured optical fiber and a pump light source. The microstructured optical fiber comprises a core and a cladding region surrounding the core, as well as a first fiber length section, a second fiber length section and an intermediate fiber length section between said first and second fiber length sections. The first fiber length section comprises a core with a first characteristic core diameter. The second fiber length section comprises a core with a second characteristic core diameter, smaller than said first characteristic core diameter, where said second characteristic core diameter is substantially constant along said second fiber length section. The intermediate length section of the optical fiber comprises a core which is tapered from said first characteristic core diameter to said second characteristic core diameter over a tapered length.

To provide a laser processing machine, a processing method, and a laser light source that are capable of miniaturization. The laser processing machine includes a laser light source and an optical system. The laser light source includes a light emitting body including a substrate and a bottom emission type vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser element that is provided on one surface of the substrate and emits an excitation light beam from another surface side of the substrate, and a cavity that is disposed in contact with the light emitting body on the other surface side of the substrate and oscillates a pulsed laser beam by incidence of the excitation light beam. The optical system causes the pulsed laser beam to contract and applies the pulsed laser beam to a workpiece.

An electrodeless laser-driven light source includes a laser source that generates CW sustaining light. A pump laser generates pump light. A Q-switched laser crystal is positioned to receive the pump light and generates pulsed laser light in response to the generated pump light that propagates to a breakdown region in a gas filled bulb comprising an ionizing gas. A detector detects plasma light generated by a CW plasma located at least partly in a CW plasma region in the gas filled bulb comprising the ionizing gas and generates a detection signal. A controller generates control signals that control the pump light to the Q-switched laser crystal so as to extinguish the pulsed laser light within a time delay after the detection signal exceeds a threshold level.