Numerical Simulation of Thermo-Optic Effects in an Nd: Glass Slab with Low Thermally Induced Wavefront Distortion

A gain slab configuration with a low thermally induced wavefront distortion, which is based on heating the edge by the cladding layer, is proposed. The gain slab will be applied to a helium-cooled Nd: glass multislab laser amplifier with an output of 100 J at a repetition rate of 10 Hz. Additionally...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inPhotonics Vol. 8; no. 4; p. 91
Main Authors Wang, Xiaoqin, Wang, Jiangfeng, Guo, Jiangtao, Lu, Xinghua, Wang, Yamin, Xiao, Qi, Fan, Wei, Li, Xuechun
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Basel MDPI AG 2021
Subjects
absorbing cladding layer
Absorptivity
Cladding
Cooling
Distortion
Energy
Heat
Helium
Laboratories
laser amplifier
Laser cooling
Lasers
Mathematical models
Nd: glass slabs
Neodymium lasers
Optics
Parameters
Simulation
thermo-optic effects
Three dimensional models
Wave fronts
wavefront distortion
United States > US
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

More Information
Summary:A gain slab configuration with a low thermally induced wavefront distortion, which is based on heating the edge by the cladding layer, is proposed. The gain slab will be applied to a helium-cooled Nd: glass multislab laser amplifier with an output of 100 J at a repetition rate of 10 Hz. Additionally, a 3D numerical simulation model is developed to analyze the thermo-optic effects in the gain slab. Some parameters, including the absorption coefficient (α) of the cladding layer, the shape of the pump beam, and the gap between the pump area and absorbing cladding layer, are optimized to eliminate the thermo-optic effects. The results indicate that the peak-to-valley (P-V) of the thermally induced wavefront distortion of the specific gain slab can be reduced by 61% if other parameters remain constant.
ISSN:2304-6732
2304-6732
DOI:10.3390/photonics8040091