15mm thick Brass optical plate ready for a new project
The challenge:
-To build the highest performance high power RGB laser module out there
-To build the best beam quality possible
-To achieve a low divergence
-To achieve a high energy density to get crisp/bright beams
-To get super-stable system free from re-align
-To have a diode host easy to remove for diode replacement
-With module power upgrade
-With active TEC cooling
ALL the above into less than iPad Air surface.
How?
-Performance: We fried our mind to get an optical layout for cylindrical correction ALL diodes. Done!
Loss on cyls is about -2%. Loss on prism pair (competitors) is usually >-10-15%. So at the end we get more from each Laser diode.
-Beam quality: Unit comes with on-board RGB spatial filter with HQ achromatic lens (under demand).
-Low divergence: Real 0,8mrad ALL wavelengths. 6mm beam. Matched divergence: Better colour rendering @all distances.
No, we don't just match beam size out of the unit, we take our time to match divergence for solid RGB overlap.
-High energy density: No prism pairs, i.e. no gaps between beams due expansion. Cyls loss is not dependant on the expansion degree, so we can achieve 0,8mrad with no gaps. Low FL special collimators to achieve this.
-Higher stability due thick brass plate and one-bolt mounts. No need to realign if the unit is treated with care.
-Diode host: New design for a precise centering/rotation of laser diode=less beam aberrations. Also host is removable from TOP with just 2x M3 screws.
-Power: (same plate): 8W, 12W, 16W 20W RGB. Upgradable.
Max raw diode power: 6W 638nm, 6,5W 520nm, 12W 465nm (or 450nm): Total max RGB RAW power: 24W.
What 0,8mrad means:
Lets compare our RGB 20W @0,8mrad vs a 35W RGB Projector @1,2mrad typical:
AFTER 20meters:
Our 20W module: beam size 22mm: Energy density: 52,6mW/mm2
35W projector: Beam size: 30mm: Energy density: 49,5mW/mm2
So energy density after 20m is almost the same but beam in our module is 2/3 the size vs. the 35W unit.
Same energy density into less area surface simply means Brighter Beams.
So yes, our 20W beams look better than a 35W unit because of Thinner-brighter beams, which in fact is what matters in real world.
This is to prove how divergence is important to get the most from the raw laser diode power. And because $ is power dependant this also means you get the most from you paid for.
So before paying huge amounts for High Wattage, keep also in mind divergence as an essential variable.
Less power Projector with good divergence is going to perform better than a high $ Wattage unit with higher divergence in most cases (depending of many variables of course)-
More advances soon!! Stay tuned!