Diamonds Shown to Improve Laser Beams

Phys.org reported that according to research published in Laser & Photonics Reviews, a team from the Macquarie Photonics Research Centre has shown that diamonds can drastically improve the quality of “high power laser beams.”

As quoted in the market news:

The major advantage of using diamond is its outstanding ability to dissipate heat – faster than other optical materials and for conversion to be achieved passively in a very small package.

‘Diamond is a very exciting laser material,’ says [lead research Dr. Aaron] McKay, ‘Its properties in so many aspects are so much better than other materials that there are likely to be massive opportunities for greatly improving laser capability.’

This beam conversion occurs using a process called stimulated Raman scattering; a phenomenon studied in diamond at Macquarie University extensively for the past five years, as reviewed by Mildren and colleagues in the new book Optical Engineering of Diamond. ‘The Raman process not only improves the beam quality but also converts the colour of the laser beam,’ he says.

Click here to read the full Phys.org report.