Very Old Laser Power Meter

[Eidetic]

Old is right for this c1964 Optics Technology model 610 laser power meter. The presence of its detector is what makes it special though, being the oldest CW detector in the archive. It has magnets on the bottom to stick on the steel plates on the top and back of the meter. It's a photocell with a small negative lens mounted in the middle of an input window that appears to be a weak positive lens. I tried it with both 610 meters in the collection now. In a He-Ne beam measured to be 29.5 +/- 0.2 mW with two c1999 Coherent Fieldmasters, one read 20 mW and the other 30. I think it's just the contacts in the switches though, and the detector is working fine. The cord is also in great shape. Not bad for a 54 year old, Beatles-era bit of kit.

[laserist]

Magnets - what a great idea!

[Eidetic]

Got a message from our own Kevin Criqui who saw one of these meters, also with its detector, at HSC in Sunnyvale. HSC is Halted to those of us who were in Silicon Valley any time since the '70s. There was Haltek (right behind Spectra-Physics), but I digress. I called them right up!

Bob Ellingson, the owner, said it's been there since he started 40 years ago. Apparently they used it all along to measure the lasers they sold. Not bad for a meter made in 1969, according to the inscription inside. And great to have a piece connected so well with Silicon Valley.