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> Coherent technologies/sdl special double diode laser ?
Coherent technologies/sdl special double diode laser ?
Coherent Technologies/SDL Special Double Diode Laser
For sale- a Coherent Technologies/SDL Special Double Diode Laser. I guess. The surplus info said it was from Coherent Technologies, but I don't see that anywhere on it. The only thing I see other than a NEOS Q-switch is on what I am guessing are two diode lasers, marked #1 and #2 in the third picture. If you enlarge #1 maybe you can see that it says SDL-SPECIAL AN 006 on it. The other one is AN 007.
They appear to be water cooled with the fluid piped through one into the gold-plated piece between them into the other one and then back out of the enclosure, which is heavy welded aluminum with an interior foam padding. I can t even begin to guess what sort of diode lasers they are, assuming that is what they are, and I have no idea what the actual application of the laser system was.
If I had to guess about the light path I would say that both laser beams are bounced into the gold-plated thing and then out onto the red mirror device below #1 which directs it to the black mirror device just to the left of it which then shoots it through a hole in the aluminum plate down into the central portion of the laser where at some point it emits from a really large 2 1/2" aperture. What the rest of the various mirrors and stuff do I have no idea.
I assume the interior was pressurized, possibly with an inert gas? That is based on a fitting on the cable input panel that is basically a tire valve thing, but I don t see how you would have evacuated the air inside, there are no vacuum fittings, unless the tire valve thing was initially used for that. The top cover was held in place by an outrageous number of screws, and is fitted around the perimeter with a rubber gasket. So I doubt that much effort would have been expended if it was just going to operate in regular atmospheric conditions.
On the other hand this thing may well have been airborne, so it might have been to keep the outside out rather than the inside in. I managed to strip one of the screws in getting the top off, but there are so many more I can t imagine it is necessary. If it is I guess the thing could be drilled and tapped for a larger screw. The top was totally buttoned up, the bottom not so much, and the panel with the electrical fittings not at all. So it would take some work to get it back to being a sealed container. I will leave that to you.
So perhaps the electronics were Coherent products, but I can t see any indication that the laser unit itself is. Then in the last picture is some mystery device that was sitting on top of the laser enclosure, I thought it was attached but turns out it was just sitting there. When I search SDL laser it brought up something about an angled diffraction grating, maybe that is what it is? The central section appears to rotate.
The central optical section of the grating, assuming that is what it is, is roughly 2 in diameter, the same as the aperture of the laser. So if I had to guess the grating was probably mounted on or near the aperture (which is in the middle of the right end looking at the aluminum box in the first picture), but I don t know how, it is just a loose object at this point. The next-to-last picture is of the exit mirror, beam splitter perhaps, just before it goes out of the box and presumably into the diffraction grating. The aperture glass was fitted with a protective cover and appears to be in great shape.
