The DiPOLE100 laser builds on the initial DiPOLE design to increase the output energy. This next generation system is an order of magnitude more powerful than the initial DiPOLE system. To achieve this increase in power, the system has two amplifier heads in series, as seen in Figure 1. The first laser head amplifies the beam to 10 J of energy and the second further amplifies the beam to an energy of 100 J. When first operational, this laser system was the world’s first kilowatt-level, diode-pumped, solid-state laser producing pulses at a record-breaking energy of 100 J at an unprecedented repetition rate of 10 Hz.
Figure 1 - 3D view of the DiPOLE100 system.
Parameters list:
Pulse energy up to 150 J
Wavelength 1030 nm
Pulse duration 2-10 ns
Repetition rate up to 10 Hz
Output beam size 75x75 mm
Optical to optical efficiency 22.0%
Performance:
In 2017, CALTA reported pulsed laser operation of 105 J, 10 ns pulses at a 10 Hz repetition rate [1]. The energy characteristics and the long term stability of the output beam are shown in the graphs in Figure 2.
(a) (b)
Figure 2 - Experimental data showing (a) the relationship between output energy and optical efficiency and (b) the energy stability of the laser over an hour.
