Laser beam combining in potassium vapor
Abstract
Energy transfer between two laser beams of comparable intensity due to their nonlinear interaction in an atomic vapor was investigated. Strong coupling occurs due to stimulated Rayleigh scattering when the frequencies of the two waves differ by the inverse of the excited-state lifetime. The energy transfer between two nearly equal energy pulses from an alexandrite laser tuned near the 4 2S(1/2) - 4 2P(3/2) transition of potassium vapor was measured. It was found that as much as 85 percent of the total incident energy was contained in one of the output beams.
- Publication:
-
IEEE Journal of Quantum Electronics
- Pub Date:
- January 1991
- DOI:
- 10.1109/3.73550
- Bibcode:
- 1991IJQE...27..128G
- Keywords:
-
- Electron States;
- Laser Beams;
- Laser Target Interactions;
- Metal Vapors;
- Potassium;
- Rayleigh Scattering;
- Atomic Energy Levels;
- Coupling Coefficients;
- Energy Transfer;
- Laser Outputs;
- Wave Interaction;
- Lasers and Masers