Development of a compact vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser end-pumped actively Q-switched laser for laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy

Abstract

This paper reports the development of a compact and portable actively Q-switched Nd:YAG laser and its applications in laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS). The laser was end-pumped by a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL). The cavity lases at a wavelength of 1064 nm and produced pulses of 16 ns with a maximum pulse energy of 12.9 mJ. The laser exhibits a reliable performance in terms of pulse-to-pulse stability and timing jitter. The LIBS experiments were carried out using this laser on NIST standard alloy samples. Shot-to-shot LIBS signal stability, crater profile, time evolution of emission spectra, plasma electron density and temperature, and limits of detection were studied and reported in this paper. The test results demonstrate that the VCSEL-pumped solid-state laser is an effective and compact laser tool for laser remote sensing applications.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
Mar 01, 2016
Source ID
10.1063/1.4944856

Entities

People

  • Bryan Nelsen
  • Kevin C. Chen
  • Lei Liu
  • Rongzhang Chen
  • Shuo Li
  • Xi Huang
  • Yongfeng Lu

Organizations

  • Defense Threat Reduction Agency
  • University of Nebraska–Lincoln
  • University of Pittsburgh

Tags

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Integrated Circuit Design and Technology.
  • Pulsed Power and Plasma Physics.

Technology Areas

  • Directed Energy
  • Microelectronics