Japanese specialists were able to increase the power of a semiconductor laser by an order of magnitude. Now he is capable
What is known
Scientists from the Land of the Rising Sun have developedphotonic-crystal surface-emitting laser (PCSRL) scaling technology. The power increased from 5 watts to 50 watts, which was enough to cut metal.
Modern PCSEL photonic crystal lasers have a small emitting surface. Its size is up to 1 mm. The structure consists of a semiconductor sheet with gauge holes.
Japanese engineers spent several years in order tomake sure that the light from the large area does not lose focus. In addition, they were able to solve the problem of thermoregulation. To do this, regular oval holes were integrated into the semiconductor sheet.
Ultimately, the researchers created a laserPCSEL size 3mm. Scientists believe that in the future they will be able to develop identical lasers with a size of up to 10 mm and increase the power to 1 MW. But even the current 50 W is enough to use lasers in metalworking, which will reduce the cost of laser machines.