Patent ID: 7545844

Claim:
Apparatus for producing an array of emitters with different wavelength outputs, the apparatus comprising: an array of laser emitters positioned along an emitter array axis, each said laser emitter having a respective laser cavity; a three-dimensional optical element having a Bragg grating recorded therein, the Bragg grating having a grating period that varies as a function of position along an axis of the optical element, wherein the optical element is adapted to receive respective light emitted by each of the laser emitters, and to reflect at least a portion of the received light such that a respective portion of the reflected light enters each of the laser cavities, thereby locking each laser emitter to a respective emission wavelength that is based on a respective position of the laser emitter within the array; and a wavelength multiplexer adapted to receive the light at each of the respective emission wavelengths and to multiplex the light at each of the respective emission wavelengths into a single output beam.