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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 163 records · Page 9
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2025

Detection limits for laser absorption spectroscopy of Li in laser ablation plumes

A high-sensitivity laser absorption spectroscopy (LAS) method is demonstrated for rapid and non-contact analysis of Li in solids. Glass samples with Li concentrations ranging from 1-500 ppm by mass are ablated in 5 Torr air, and time-resolved Li atomic absorption is measured using a tunable laser near 671 nm. Significant improvements in analytical performance over prior laser-induced breakdown techniques are demonstrated. Here, a single-shot limit of detection (LOD) of 180 ppb is shown for fixed wavelength operation, improving to 6 ppb with averaging over 1000 ablation shots (100 s acquisition time). Isotope-resolved Li absorption spectra are measured with a 17 ppb LOD in 40 s. Methods for optimizing LOD based on noise/averaging properties of LAS experiments in LA plumes are discussed.

(020.3260) Isotope shifts↗
NASA NTRS1975

Laser head for simultaneous optical pumping of several dye lasers

The invention is a laser head for simultaneous pumping several dye lasers with a single flash lamp. The laser head includes primarily a multi-elliptical cylinder cavity with a single flash lamp placed along the common focal axis of the cavity and with capillary tube dye cells placed along each of the other focal axes of the cavity. The inside surface of the cavity is polished. Hence, the single flash lamp supplies the energy to the several dye cells.

Mumola, P. B.↗
NASA NTRS1974

GaAs laser diode pumped Nd:YAG laser

A 1.5-mm by 3-cm neodymium-ion doped YAG laser rod has been side pumped using a GaAs laser diode array tuned to the 8680-A absorption line, achieving a multimode average output power of 120 mW for a total input power of 20 W to the final-stage laser diode drivers. The pumped arrangement was designed to take advantage of the high brightness of a conventional GaAs array as a linear source by introducing the pump light through a slit into a close-wrapped gold coated pump cavity. This cavity forms an integrating chamber for the pump light.

Conant, L. C.↗
NASA NTRS1982

Studies of single-mode injection lasers and of quaternary materials. Volume 1: Single-mode constricted double-heterojunction AlGaAs diode lasers

Constricted double-heterojunction (CDH) lasers are presented as the class of single-mode nonplanar-substrate devices for which the lasing cavity is on the least resistive electrical path between the contact and the substrate. Various types of CDH structures are considered under three general topics: liquid-phase epitaxy over channeled substrates, lateral mode control, and current control in nonplanar-substrate devices. Ridge-guide CDH lasers have positive-index lateral-mode confinement and provide: single-mode CW operation to 7 mW/facet at room temperature and to 3 mW/facet at 150 C; light-current characteristics with second-harmonic distortion as low as -57 dB below the fundamental level; threshold-current temperature coefficients, as high as 375 C (pulsed) and 310 C (CW); constant external differential quantum efficiency to 100 C; and lasing operation to 170 C CW and 280 C pulsed. Semileakyguide CDH lasers have an asymmetric leaky cavity for lateral-mode confinement and provide single-mode operation to 15 to 20 mW/facet CW and to 50 mW/facet at 50% duty cycle. Modulation characteristics and preliminary reliability data are discussed.

Botez, D.↗
NASA NTRS1982

Study of laser heated propulsion devices. Part 2: Assessment of laser propulsion modeling and simulation requirements

Theoretical models for the laser heated thruster are reviewed. The requirements for an improved laser heated thruster theoretical model are discussed. The application of a time dependent finite difference Navier-Stokes equation solution to the laser heated thruster problem is described, along with a simple closed form solution which was developed in order to gain insight into the difficulties encountered in the pursuit of the numerical solution.

Thoenes, J.↗
NASA NTRS1983

Studies on lasers and laser devices

The goal of this grant was to study lasers, laser devices, and uses of lasers for investigating physical phenomena are studied. The active projects included the development of a tunable, narrowband XUV light source and its application to the spectroscopy of core excited atomic states, and the development of a technique for picosecond time resolution spectroscopy of fast photophysical processes.

Harris, S. E.↗
NASA NTRS1987

Efficient holmium:yttrium lithium fluoride laser longitudinally pumped by a semiconductor laser array

Optical pumping of a holmium:yttrium lithium floride (Ho:YLF) crystal with a 790-nm continuous-wave diode-laser array has generated 56 mW of 2.1-micron laser radiation with an optical-to-optical conversion slope efficiency of 33 percent while the crystal temperature is held at 77 K. The lasing threshold occurs at 7 mW of input power, and laser operation continues up to a crystal temperature of 124 K.

Hemmati, H.↗
NASA NTRS1987

Continuous-wave operation of a room-temperature, diode-laser-pumped, 946-nm Nd:YAG laser

Single-stripe diode-laser-pumped operation of a continuous-wave 946-nm Nd:YAG laser with less than 10-mW threshold has been demonstrated. A slope efficiency of 16 percent near threshold was shown with a projected slope efficiency well above a threshold of 34 percent based on results under Rhodamine 6G dye-laser pumping. Nonlinear crystals for second-harmonic generation of this source were evaluated. KNbO3 and periodically poled LiNbO3 appear to be the most promising.

Fan, T. Y.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Generation of high-power nanosecond pulses from laser diode-pumped Nd:YAG lasers

Simulation results are used to compare the pulse energy levels and pulse energy widths that can be achieved with LD-pumped Nd:YAG lasers for both the pulse-transmission mode (PTM) and pulse-reflection mode (PRM) Q-switching methods for pulse energy levels up to hundreds of microjoules and pulse widths as short as 1 ns. It is shown that high-power pulses with pulse widths as short as 1 ns can be generated with PTM Q-switched in LD-pumped Nd:YAG lasers. With the PRM Q-switching method, pulse widths as short as 2 ns and pulse energy at the level of a few hundred microjoules can also be achieved but require pumping with 8-10-mJ AlGaAs laser diode arrays.

Chan, Kinpui↗
NASA NTRS1988

A laser communication experiment utilizing the ACT satellite and an airborne laser transceiver

The Advanced Communications Technology Satellite (ACTS) will carry a laser communications transmitter package in order to attempt the experimental reception of signals transmitted from earth orbit. The ACTS laser package includes both a heterodyne transmitter and a direct-detection transmitter. The laser receiver will be installed in an aircraft that is fitted with the requisite signal window. The anticipated capability of this signal detector is noted.

Provencher, C.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Threshold analysis of pulsed lasers with application to a room-temperature Co:MgF2 laser

Rate-equation calculations are used to model accurately the near-threshold behavior of a Co:MgF2 laser operating at room temperature. The results demonstrate the limitations of the conventional threshold analysis in cases of practical interest. This conclusion is applicable to pulsed solid-state lasers in general. The calculations, together with experimental data, are used to determine emission cross sections for the Co:MgF2 laser.

Harrison, James↗
NASA NTRS1989

A laser spectrometer and wavemeter for pulsed lasers

The design, construction, calibration, and evaluation of a pulsed laser wavemeter and spectral analyzer are described. This instrument, called the Laserscope for its oscilloscope-like display of laser spectral structure, was delivered to NASA Langley Research Center as a prototype of a laboratory instrument. The key component is a multibeam Fizeau wedge interferometer, providing high (0.2 pm) spectral resolution and a linear dispersion of spectral information, ideally suited to linear array photodiode detectors. Even operating alone, with the classic order-number ambiguity of interferometers unresolved, this optical element will provide a fast, real-time display of the spectral structure of a laser output. If precise wavelength information is also desired then additional stages must be provided to obtain a wavelength measurement within the order-number uncertainty, i.e., within the free spectral range of the Fizeau wedge interferometer. A Snyder (single-beam Fizeau) wedge is included to provide this initial wavelength measurement. Difficulties in achieving the required wide-spectrum calibration limit the usefulness of this function.

Mckay, J. A.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Experimental study of the dynamics of a ruby laser pumped by a CW argon-ion laser

A study of the dynamics of a ruby laser pumped by a CW argon-ion laser is presented. The ruby laser is predominantly stable but has two accessible unstable states. One state exhibits chaotic output, while the other results in regular self-pulsing. The conditions needed for instability are discussed and homodyne spectra and temporal maps of the phase-space attractors are obtained. In addition, a numerical simulation of nonlinear beam propagation in ruby is presented that shows that strong deviations from plane-wave behavior exist, and that transverse effects must be incorporated into theoretical models of the instability.

Afzal, R. S.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Optomechanical design of the grating laser beam combiner (GLBC) laser diode header

A laser diode header has been fabricated for a grating laser beam combiner (GLBC). The laser diode header provides the thermal control, the drive electronics, and the optical system necessary for proper operation of the beam combiner. The diode header is required to provide diffraction limited optical performance while providing correction for worst case defocus aberration, 0.6 mrad excess divergence, and worst case decenter aberration, 1.0 mrad pointing error. The design of the header considered the mechanical design and the optical design together resulting in a small, self-contained header with 0.7 mrad range for focus correction and +/- 2.5 mrad of beam steering. The complete diode header is currently undergoing optical and mechanical performance testing.

Rall, Jonathan A. R.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Efficiency of Nd laser materials with laser diode pumping

For pulsed laser-diode-pumped lasers, where efficiency is the most important issue, the choice of the Nd laser material makes a significant difference. The absorption efficiency, storage efficiency, and extraction efficiency for Nd:YAG, Nd:YLF, Nd:GSGG, Nd:BEL, Nd:YVO4, and Nd:glass are calculated. The materials are then compared under the assumption of equal quantum efficiency and damage threshold. Nd:YLF is found to be the best candidate for the application discussed here.

Barnes, Norman P.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Tm,Ho:YLF laser end-pumped by a semiconductor diode laser array

An Ho:YLF crystal including Tm as sensitizers for the activator Ho, is optically pumped with a semiconductor diode laser array to generate 2.1 micron radiation with a pump power to output power of efficiency as high as 68 percent. The prior-art dual sensitizer system of Er and Tm requires cooling, such as by LN2, but by using Tm alone and decreasing the concentrations of Tm and Ho, and decreasing the length of the laser rod to about 1 cm, it has been demonstrated that laser operation can be obtained from a temperature of 77 K with an efficiency as high as 68 percent up to ambient room temperature with an efficiency at that temperature as high as 9 percent.

Hemmati, Hamid↗
NASA NTRS1991

Eye-safe coherent laser radar system at 2.1 microns using Tm,Ho:YAG lasers

An eye-safe pulsed coherent laser radar has been developed by using single-frequency Tm,Ho:YAG lasers and heterodyne detection. Returns from a mountainside located 145 km from the laser radar system and the measurement of wind velocity to ranges exceeding 20 km have been demonstrated with transmitted pulse energies of 22 mJ.

Henderson, Sammy W.↗