Patent ID: 6370178
Filing Date: 2002-04-09
Classification: H01S

Abstract:
An optical cavity for a wide area laser oscillator comprising:a waveguide structure having a transverse width, a length and a vertical spacing collectively defining a gain region, the waveguide structure having an axis extending along its length; a first spherical mirror and a second spherical mirror disposed near opposite ends of the waveguide structure to define a resonator, the first and second spherical mirrors separated by a distance L and having a substantially identical radius of curvature R, the first spherical mirror having a transmissive aperture formed at its center, wherein a laser beam traverses the resonator with a plurality of off-axis traversals v to trace out a plane around the gain region before exiting through the aperture in the first spherical mirror, and wherein the distance L is determined according to the equations cos[(&mgr;/&ngr;)&pgr;]=1âˆ’(L/R)=g, for integers &mgr;