The dynamic parts of a laser beam profile are often caused by distortions or noise from camera sources or optical distortions from dirty filters or beam splitters. These dynamics can be removed with low pass filters. BeamGage, Ophir's next-generation laser beam analysis software, contains a processing feature located on the Capture tab called CONVOLUTION. Convolution Matrix or Kernel image processing can be used as a smoothing or blurring feature to remove the fast changes or dynamics from the beam profile. Here's how....
Articles
Industry-Focused Design
BeamWatch AM is the newest member of Ophir-Spiricon’s family of beam monitoring systems. It has been designed specifically for use in the additive manufacturing industry to provide non-interfering real-time beam measurement at the location of the working plane. Rigorous testing has been performed to ensure it meets the specifications detailed in Table 1 to the right.
Rayleigh-Scatter Technology
...All absorbers used in power/energy measurement are not entirely flat spectrally, that is, they vary in absorption with wavelength. For this reason, Ophir measuring heads are usually calibrated at more than one wavelength. If the absorption changes only slightly with wavelength, then we define wavelength regions such as <600nm, >600nm and give a calibration within these regions. In that case, the error in measurement between the wavelength the device was calibrated for and the measurement wavelength is assumed to be within the primary...
I recently had an opportunity to give a presentation to the 8th grade science classes in the local Greenwood Indiana school district near where I live. We talked about lasers and I was amazed at the different applications they came up with on their own. Their reactions to the different ways lasers are being used were equally amazing. It’s encouraging to see the next generation interested in such a promising industry. With 2015 being the International Year of Light, this is a great time for those who are working with...
If you need to measure your laser beam’s power or energy, but the usual cable connection between the sensor and the meter is not practical, Ophir’s Quasar may be the right solution for you.
Quasar is a wireless PC interface that connects a sensor to a PC by Bluetooth, a proven and popular interface. Using the Quasar enables working in environments where cables are not an option, for example, in areas that are supposed to be sealed, such as a high power measurement chamber, a...
When applications call for beam diagnostics in the SWIR spectral range, specifically the 1.5μm region, there are two practical options available: a phosphor-coated CCD camera or an InGaAs array camera. Here is where it may seem that the decision is easily reached, but it is the wrong solution.
Phosphor-coated CCD array cameras, although they may be reasonably inexpensive, possess significant measurement and imaging limitations. InGaAs array cameras can be more expensive, however, the...
Corrosion Report
Symptoms and Recommendations
Through the last several years in the calibration lab, we have seen an increase in the number of sensors that are being processed that have excessive corrosion. This corrosion typically presents itself in the form of “pitting” in the internal chambers, and is frequently characterized by the presence of films and build up in the internal chambers. In Figure 1, you can see...
Measuring high power laser beams in a production environment comes along with several hurdles. Here are some of the common issues that need to be addressed:
As production supply chains become ever more complex, turnaround times for vendor parts become increasingly shorter for manufacturers. And nobody with a just-in-time production line can afford quality problems with individual components!
Join us at Laser World of Photonics, , June 26-29, 2017, in Munich, to see our complete line of laser beam profiling and power / energy measurement systems. We'll be in the MKS booth, along with Newport and Spectra-Physics, Hall A2, Booth 209.
Here's a sneak peak at several new products that will be introduced at the show...
“What’s dynamic range anyway?” or “Why is it so important to state it right?”
By the end of this article you’ll be fully exposed to the importance of stating your dynamic range correctly and will get a quick lesson about how Ophir-Spiricon, a global leader in precision infrared optics and photonics instrumentation, determines its products’ dynamic range properly.
Let’s start from...
When working with exotic optical wavelengths and unusually low average powers, relying on one standard measurement technology is typically not sufficient. Each technology can offer advantages, but also has limitations. Using multiple measurement technologies is often the best approach to validate results with a level of high confidence.
In nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMRS), for example, it is critical to define the size, shape, and intensity of the actual power of the laser...
You may be wondering what to expect when you ask us for a laser beam profiling demo. Here's how it works.
Step 1: Exchange Information
Our first objective is to learn more about you, your laser, and your application. We may start with the question, "Why do you want a demonstration?" People have different reasons. Here's what we often hear from customers:
- You are curious about the mode or shape of your beam or perhaps your maintenance or operations people told you that something...
Sensor: "A device that detects or measures a physical property and records, indicates, or otherwise responds to it.” A sensor is a device that detects a physical quantity and responds by transmitting a signal.
Fusion: "The process or result of joining two or more things together to form a single entity.” A blending, amalgamation, joining, marrying, bonding, merging, melding, or synthesis of materials or information to realize a sum that is greater than...
There are a number of valuable tools found on the Ophir web site that help lasers users determine the appropriate sensors for their laser beams. These tools also help compute power or energy density, peak and average power, laser fluence, sensor damage limits, safety, and focal spot size.
Basic Sensor Finder Program
This is our original Sensor Finder program...
Basic Sensor Finder Program
This is our original Sensor Finder program...
Via StarLab it’s easy.
Via RS232: We do not provide RS232 commands for starting the logging on the meter, so this is not directly possible.
However, the customer can use the Simulate Key-press command to provide a virtual keypad control in order to set up and start the logging on the meter. Extracted from our “Remote Control” documentation:
To create consistent, strong structures using laser-based additive manufacturing processes that meet flyable DOD standards or FDA requirements, the metallurgy must be consistent. In addition, a laser beam of known dimension, power density, and focal spot location is required
Since the Scientific Revolution of the 1500’s and the Industrial Revolution of the 1700’s, both science and industry have moved and merged at a rapid pace. Every time you look through a trade journal, listen to the daily news, or explore the Web, you see announcements about discoveries and inventions. Remember thinking how fantastical the technologies showcased in the movie Star Wars were? Yet today we are beginning to see some of them emerge. What was once deemed science fiction or fantasy is now becoming reality.
...Since the late 1950’s, lasers have rapidly evolved from a somewhat simplistic physics laboratory curiosity to a complex, multifunction tool that is a mainstay in many industries and research institutions. Most of us have used laser pointers, played a game of laser tag, or seen lasers used at light shows or concerts. But few people know that lasers are also commonly used for such important applications as communications, navigation, automotive welding and cutting, general industrial, rapid prototyping and additive manufacturing, analytical instruments,...
Measuring optical signals in the femtowatt (10-15) to nanowatt (10-9) range can be a daunting task. Signal levels this low are lost in typical detector noise levels and swamped by background light. The noise floor for photodiode detectors operated with a small bandwidth (~10 Hz) is on the order of 1 picowatt (10-12). Further narrowing of the bandwidth by filtering or averaging will only provide a small additional reduction in the noise level....
19th century British physicist and engineer William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin, was the first to say, “If you can’t measure it, you
can’t improve it.” When applying this principle to improving laser-based processes, there are a variety of parameters that must be
measured. Given the continuously rising power of laser systems in material processing, the requirements for measurement
systems are more challenging than ever. Which technologies are available to measure high-power lasers? How often should they
be measured? What measurements should be tracked? When this data is collected, what should be done with it?
Each sensor from Ophir includes a performance specification datasheet but not a user manual. This datasheet lists operational parameters for the sensor, including items such as spectral range, power range, aperture size, accuracy specification, etc. Copies of these datasheets for current sensors are available on the website by clicking on the “Specifications” tab of the sensor's product page...
Often we get requests for the Total Optical Path Length when beam splitters are used on our line of 4.5 mm recessed CCD cameras. For a common setup using beam splitters P/N SPZ17015 and either one or two P/N SPZ17026 here are the Total Optical Path Length and a couple of pictures showing the layout. Length 2 (From first beam splitter to second beam splitter) Length 3 (From second beam splitter to third beam splitter) Total Optical Path Length with 2 beam splitters Total Optical Path Length with 3 beam splitters...
| The selection of an appropriate sensor to measure the power of a laser seems to be a simple and straightforward process. The sensor technology doesn’t seem to be too complex, the physical setup of the sensor seems easy enough. Yet, more often than not, the sensor turns out to NOT be the right one. As a result, inaccurate measurements are obtained, the sensor exhibits premature failure, and costly full disc replacement and recalibration are required. |
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Introduction
| An integrating sphere collects electromagnetic radiation from a source usually external to the optical device, usually for flux measurement or optical attenuation. Radiation introduced into an integrating sphere strikes the reflective walls and undergoes multiple diffuse reflections. After numerous reflections, the radiation is dispersed highly uniformly at the sphere walls. The resulting integrated radiation level is directly proportional to the initial radiation level... |