A variety of laser products were introduced at Photonics West in San Francisco, USA, for use in a wide range of applications, which will allow companies to enter new markets.
IPG Photonics Corporation launched a wide portfolio that included: a ECO family of kW class Ytterbium fibre lasers with a wall-plug efficiency exceeding 40 per cent and an estimated operation time between service and intervention of five years; a Mega Pulse line of nanosecond fibre lasers with energy per pulse up to 100mJ and an average power up to 5kW; and a family of single-mode green fibre lasers providing up to 500W average power in CW and QCW modes with a wall-plug efficiency above 15 per cent.
The company also released: a range of high power visible fibre lasers with a wavelength selection of green to red; industrial grade UV fibre lasers in both 355nm and 266nm, operating in pulsed or CW modes; families of industrial pico and femtosecond fibre lasers; and various versions of pulsed pure fibre and hybrid fibre to the crystal lasers for the MIR spectrum range of 2 - 4.5µm, including the first practical femtosecond laser source in 2400-2500nm spectral range based on Cr:ZnS polycrystal elements.
‘We are unveiling a group of products that provide a multitude of new solutions to customers,’ said Dr Valentin Gapontsev, CEO of IPG Photonics. ‘Our expanded selection of lasers allows new and existing customers to [increase] the available markets for IPG lasers, including semiconductors, LED, solar, displays, processing of thin films, entertainment, 3D cinema, 3D printing and many other exciting applications.’
Spectra-Physics, a Newport company, introduced HighQ-2, an ultra-compact, air-cooled, fixed wavelength industrial femtosecond laser. The ultrafast laser delivers short pulses, high peak power (>190 kW) and a highly focusable beam profile, suitable for fixed wavelength multiphoton imaging, micro- and nano-structuring, micro- and nano-surgery, and micro-dissection applications.
‘The new laser is ideal for powering a range of high precision applications in bio-imaging, bio-medical and microprocessing,’ said Klaus Madlener, managing director for Spectra-Physics.
Available in infrared and green wavelengths, HighQ-2 has a footprint of less than 222 x 204 x 101mm and is an OEM laser for 24/7 operation. The laser is equipped with long-life diodes, a sealed optical cavity design, and is manufactured in a controlled, clean room environment.
