Patent ID: 8750339
Filing Date: 2014-06-10
Classification: G02F,H01S

Abstract:
1. An apparatus comprising: a master-oscillator ring laser that has an optical signal ring path and generates a ring signal laser beam that propagates along the optical signal ring path in the ring laser, wherein the ring signal laser beam has a first wavelength, wherein the ring laser includes a first optical fiber that forms a first portion of the optical signal ring path, and wherein the first optical fiber includes an optically-pumped rare-earth-doped large-mode-area (LMA) gain-fiber section and fiber-end optics at a first end of the first optical fiber and fiber-end optics at a second end of the first optical fiber, the first and second fiber-end optics configured to form a second portion of the optical signal ring path between the first end and the second end of the first optical fiber such that the ring signal laser beam propagates across free-space parts of the second portion of the optical signal ring path; a first pump port configured to guide pump light into the first optical fiber; a Q-switch in the second portion of the optical signal ring path, wherein the Q-switch operates independent of cavity length during normal operation of the Q-switch; extraction optics configured to obtain an intermediate signal beam from the ring signal laser beam in the second portion of the optical signal ring path; a rare-earth-doped optical-fiber power amplifier that is optically coupled to receive the intermediate signal beam and that has a power-gain-fiber section configured to generate an amplified second output beam; and a second pump port configured to guide pump light into the optical-fiber power amplifier.