Characterization of TI:Sapphire Laser Rods for Installation in the Polarized Light Source.

Corum, S.

Technical Information Center Oak Ridge Tennessee

关键词: Lasers;    Polarized light sources;    Particle accelerators;    Absorption;    Electrons;   

RP-ID  :  DE2004826723

学科分类：工程和技术（综合）

美国|英语

来源: National Technical Reports Library

【 摘 要 】

The Flash:Ti laser in the Polarized Light Source at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC) is used to obtain spin polarized electrons for high-energy particle physics experiments. The Flash:Ti laser utilizes titanium-doped sapphire (Ti:Sapphire) crystals to produce laser light. The properties of these crystals, or laser rods, greatly affect the quality of the laser beam produced (e.g. power and jitter), which in turn affects the overall quality and reliability of the particle physics experiments at SLAC. In this interest, seven Ti:Sapphire laser rods were tested for absorption and transmission properties as a function of angular position (i.e. the rod was rotated along its geometrical axis). 833 nm light from a diode laser was linearly polarized and passed through the rods to test for transmission properties. The time-averaged power output of the emitted light was measured with a photodiode/powermeter apparatus. Similarly, the absorption properties of the rods were tested by passing linearly polarized light from a 543 nm green He:Ne laser through the rods. The rod with the best combination of absorption and transmission properties was selected for installation in the Polarized Light Source at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center.