What Happens When a Signal Beam Is Not at the Center of a Laser's Gain Curve?

[Niles]

Hi

Gain comptetion in a laser is explained very nicely here: http://books.google.com/books?id=E7...age&q=gain clamped steady state laser&f=false

My question regarding this concept is: Say we look at a 3 or 4 level system. In that case we usually send in a signal beam alongside the pump, which we want to amplify. Say that the frequency of my signal beam is *not* at the center of my gain curve. When amplification begins, the curve saturates homogeneously, but here is my question: What happens next? Because the mode we are amplifying is *not* at the gain peak, so when the curve saturates homogeneously, this mode will not be the one at threshold. I've looked in 5 different books, and not a single one explained what happens in this case.

If anybody can shed some light on this (pun intended, haha!), I would be very grateful. I can't see what happens in the above case.Niles.

 

[eljose79]

Hi Niles,

That's a great question! In the case where the signal beam is not at the center of the gain curve, the amplification process will still occur, but the threshold for lasing will be higher. This means that the pump power required to reach the threshold for lasing will be greater than if the signal beam was at the center of the gain curve.

Once the curve saturates homogeneously, the mode that is closest to the center of the gain curve will become dominant and reach the threshold for lasing first. The other modes will also reach the threshold eventually, but they will require more pump power.

It's important to note that this process only occurs if the gain medium is homogeneous and all modes have equal access to the gain. If the gain medium is not homogeneous, then the mode closest to the center of the gain curve may not necessarily reach the threshold first.

I hope this helps clarify the concept for you. Let me know if you have any other questions.