Five Channel Fiber-Coupled Laser Diode System; up to 50W Laser Output Power per Channel

Product Overview:

Five Channel High Power Laser Diode Source System Overview

The MCS/6500-LDX high power laser diode source and control system is a completely integrated, turn-key five channel system for R&D and industrial testing applications. These pre-configured multi-channel instruments give the user full control over the integrated high power laser diodes. The user can adjust each laser diode's optical output power and temperature set-point as well as set each channel to operate in CW or QCW (pulse) mode. Each fiber coupled laser diode is mounted to a Peltier cooled mounting plate inside the five channel instrument. The laser is precisely calibrated and controlled to deliver a highly stable output.

These all-inclusive instruments include the laser diodes (fiber coupled rear panel output), precision current sources to bias the laser diodes, high power TEC controllers to stabilize the temperature and a TEC / Peltier cooled mounting plate for each laser diode.

Factory Configured Protection Settings for the Laser Diode:

The MCS series instruments ship with factory configured protection settings to make sure that the integrated laser diode is run safely and operates within the specified maximum operating limits. These limits include the upper current limit and upper temperature limit. Additionally, a soft-start current ramp is set to 300 milliseconds to protect the laser from thermal shock when the bias current is applied. This soft-start ramp time can be customer configured through the front panel or digital interface. These units also have clamping circuitry to protect the laser against power surges and ESD.

Peltier Based Temperature Control System

These units have separate integrated TEC controllers with a full P.I.D. control loop to deliver fast and efficient heat removal from the laser diode source. Each laser diode is mounted to a Peltier cooled mounting plate. The mounting plate material is nickel plate copper. The internal mounting plates are machined with very high surface finish and flatness to provide low thermal resistance. Typical thermal resistance is less than 0.06 K/C. These laser diode mounting plates are attached to a fan cooled air duct to remove the waste heat and keep the laser temperature stable.

Soft-Start Current Ramp

In addition to the current the temperature limit protection settings, the MCS series laser diode systems give the user the option of setting the soft-start current ramp time from 300 milliseconds up to 10 seconds. The system is set to a 300 millisecond ramp as the default. This user adjustable current ramp allows you to customize the "power on" sequence of the source for your specific application.

User Controls

Users have full control of the fiber coupled laser module power through a PC controlled digital interface. The units are supplied with RS232 I/O and LabView drivers. They can also be ordered with a USB interface adapter. Laser output power is set by adjusting the current level (ACC mode) or adjusting the laser in automatic power (APC) control mode. The APC mode utilizes the laser diode's internal monitor photo-diode to feedback to the bias current and temperature controller.